Telcos have been advised to avoid making their own content or spend too much effort on sourcing exclusive third-party material. Contradicting the general view that ‘content is king’, Tom McKeever, consulting director at consultancy firm Ovum told delegates at the IPTV World Forum in March: “The key to success is partnering, not getting into the content game. It is about differentiating content - not making it.” These sentiments were echoed by Andrew Burke, CEO at BT Entertainment Division, which has just announced a string of major content deals for its forthcoming IPTV rollout. He pointed out, “We are not a content company but we know what we do well, and that is providing a platform and that is what we are going to major on.”

McKeever said, “Telecoms companies are trusted by the consumer to provide connectivity around the home. While content is king, content wants to be on every platform. Ultimately, most content will be available on most platforms and it will not be a critical differentiator.

“If you focus your entire strategy on content then you will miss other parts like provisioning, customer care and billing. Telcos are trusted providers in the home and they are good at that, and they have the tools to exploit that.” McKeever pointed to the threat of Internet video providers who want to by-pass platform operators to reach consumers. He told the audience in London: “All existing operators need to figure out how to get themselves in a trusted position, otherwise why will consumers continue to bother with you? What value are you going to deliver? Is it the EPG (Electronic Programme Guide) or better customer service? It is not going to be the content that is the critical factor.”