T-HT clocks 56,355 IPTV subs

May 9, 2008 – Croatian telco T-Hrvatski Telekom (T-HT) has announced that it reached 56,355 customers for its “MAXtv” IPTV service in the first quarter of this year, compared to 15,976 as of the end of March 2007.

Deutsche Telekom adds 38,000 IPTV subscribers in Q1

May 9, 2008 – Deutsche Telekom has revealed in its Q1 results that it added 38,000 subscribers to its “T-Home Entertain” IPTV service during the period, reaching a total of 154,000.

Operator interview 2/6 - Hugo Suidman, Marketing Manager for KPN TV

"You have to be creative on every part"

Flash video player required - to download please click here

In the second instalment in a series of video interviews conducted with high-profile operators at the recent IPTV World Forum in London, we spoke to Hugo Suidman, Marketing Manager for the television offering of Dutch telco KPN.  Mr. Suidman discusses the challenges of competing in the local cable market and names some of the features that can help evolve an IPTV service into a "sophisticated and personalised" offering.

United Telecoms selects triple-play solution from UTStarcom

May 9, 2008 – UTStarcom has announced that it has been awarded a contract by Indian telco United Telecoms to deliver a triple-play solution to enable the latter to provide IPTV, broadband and VoIP services in the state of Goa.

SureWest Communications posts 180% increase in IPTV subscribers

May 8, 2008 – US independent telco SureWest Communications has revealed in its first quarter results that it achieved a 180% increase in subscribers to its IPTV services relative to the same period of last year, reaching a total of 55,200 customers.

Tiscali inks movie deal with Sony and Disney

May 8, 2008 – Italian telco Tiscali has revealed that it has signed a deal with Sony Pictures Television International and Disney-ABC Intl. Television under which it will offer Sony and Disney movies on its IPTV service.

Comstar-Ukraine introduces IPTV service in Odessa

May 8, 2008 – Comstar-Ukraine, a subsidiary of Russian telco Comstar-UTS, has launched a double-play service in the Ukrainian city of Odessa, offering IPTV and high-speed Internet services.

Russia to drive pay TV growth in Eastern Europe

May 8, 2008 – Total pay TV penetration is to increase rapidly in Eastern Europe from 40% at the end of last year to 60% by 2012 and reach a total of 63mn homes subscribing to pay TV in the region, driven by strong growth in cable and satellite and a strong market in Russia, according to analyst firm Screen Digest.

Issue 4 of ipTV News magazine is now online

The fourth issue of ipTV news magazine (March/April 08) is now available online and interactive - please click here

To subscribe to the magazine please click here

IP set-top box sales to reach US$ 3bn by 2012

May 8, 2008 – Shipments of IP set-top boxes worldwide will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 37.1% through the end of 2012 and represent annual revenues of US$ 3bn by the end of this period, according to new research by IMS Research.

Video roundtable - Next generation cable

Flash video player required - to download please click here

ipTV News Studio (part of ipTV News) and IPTV World Forum hosted a video debate discussion entitled "Next generation cable" during the IPTV World Forum 2008, held in London last March.  The discussion was chaired by TV technology journalist John Moulding and engages with threats the cable industry is facing from IPTV and satellite, and over-the-top video to some extent, and the opportunities presented by increased triple-play penetration and improved economics for non-HFC expansion.

CopperGate Communications ships five million HomePNA chipsets

May 7, 2008 – Semiconductor firm CopperGate Communications has announced the shipment of its five millionth HomePNA chipset worldwide.

Orange reaches 1.41mn European IPTV subscribers in Q1

May 7, 2008 – Orange has announced in its first quarter results that it reached 1.41mn European subscribers to its IPTV services by the end of March of this year, compared to 770,000 one year previously.

Operator interview 1/6 - Anders Brandt, International Business Development Manager for Lyse

"Build a great IPTV service and the money will come...easy as that"

Flash video player required - to download please click here

As the first instalment in a series of video interviews conducted with high-profile operators at the recent IPTV World Forum in London, we speak to Anders Brandt, International Business Development Manager for Norwegian fibre-to-the-home operator Lyse.  Mr. Brandt sees making money from an IPTV based multi-play service as easy, providing you deliver a “top-notch, no fault, high-quality service like we do, and deliver it beautifully.” He said that if these criteria are met, operators should dare to ask for good money - and it will come.

Digital Rapids opens Indian subsidiary to support SAARC countries

May 7, 2008 – Digital Rapids, a developer of solutions for IP-based media delivery, has announced the formation of its Indian subsidiary Digital Rapids India Pvt. Ltd. in the city of Gurgaon.