Open Standards: Better ROI for Video on Demand Operators, According to ABI Research

Business Wire, Feb 2, 2005

OYSTER BAY, N.Y. -- The first generation of video on demand (VOD) equipment was made by companies that built proprietary solutions. Now a new generation of vendors is refocusing the market's attention on open solutions. If open standards become the norm, cable operators stand to benefit, and balances of power shift within the industry.

That won't happen overnight, says Vamsi Sistla, ABI Research's director of broadband and residential entertainment research. But as demand for the equipment grows, next generation vendors are focusing attention on non-proprietary solutions that can use off the shelf products, components, architecture and interfaces, assembled as a customized solution for on-demand services.

"As such systems become commoditized," says Sistla, "opportunities arise. On one hand it would be good for operators. The equipment they need to use would be available from a much wider variety of sources, at dramatically lower prices. This would increase their leverage, delivering better margins, from a faster return on a lower investment."

ABI Research believes that open standards would benefit the industry. And it will change the market in other ways. "Once that happens," adds Sistla, "competition in the world of VOD is going to boil down to this: who can provide the best quality content storage and delivery solution at an affordable price, running on multiple platforms?"

ABI Research's study, "VOD and PVR: Opportunities for VOD, PVR, and IP Equipment Vendors, Content Providers and Operators," analyzes the present and future market and the technology and service trends for cable and telco video-on-demand (VOD), as well as for Personal Video Recorders (PVR).

Founded in 1990 and headquartered in New York, ABI Research maintains global operations that support annual research programs, quarterly intelligence services and market reports in wireless, automotive, semiconductors, broadband, and energy. Their market research products can be found on the Web at www.abiresearch.com, or by calling 516.624.2500.