Cloud-based TV service revenues will increase from nearly $120 million in 2013 to more than three-quarters of a billion dollars by 2017, according to Multimedia Research Group.
Garnering the lion’s share of those revenues will be cloud services for cable operators, followed by satellite and then IPTV. The market for cloud services for pay-TV operators is just starting and vendors are racing to capitalize on it.
Vendors claim that pretty much the entire TV delivery value chain can be offered via the cloud. Technically, this is already happening because current OTT offerings such as Netflix, Hulu, Amazon and iTunes are all really cloud-based and consumers use their own devices, instead of using traditional set-top boxes.
Cloud service isn’t a flashy new trend; it’s a steady migration away from legacy hardware and software services. Although not every pay-TV operator is likely to decide to scrap an entire legacy infrastructure or platform for the cloud, any operator can benefit today.
Some of the largest market drivers for cloud-based TV services are multi-screen and TV Everywhere, as well as the migration from QAM to IP video networks for cable operators.
Additionally, the cloud can help operators lower their overall costs by decreasing their reliance on set-tops and relying less on hardware upgrades and additional software licenses.
