1/3 of IPTV Global Subscribers are in France

An article in the January issue of Telephony Online found the following:

• There were 2.7 million IPTV subscribers worldwide (as of end Q3 2006)

• 68% of which were in Western Europe

• 28% in Asia

• France is the biggest market worldwide for IPTV, with almost 900k subscribers, representing 1/3 of the worldwide total

• Hong Kong is the second largest, with the largest Hong Kong IPTV supplier, PCCW, having 638,000 subs in Q3 2006

France is arguably the most digitally forward thinking country in Europe leading the way in IPTV, blogging and even mobile TV (not first but near the top).

Why may you ask?
Well consider the different regulations between IPTV and traditional distribution means. The bundle approach (ie: Comcast Triple Play) of combining broadband, TV and phone services have been very success. Although the UK is the oldest IPTV market (established by Homechoice in 2000), in fighting among competitors (ie: Sky vs. Homechoice) never gained traction among consumers.

Orginal Link: Telephony Online

Home to the Future

This weekend I had a chance to check out Time Warners's Home of the Future.

It conssist of a 45,000-cubic-foot exhibition on home-related technologies. It also combines “massive size” with “tactile interactivity” to show how new technologies will soon shape homes.

It's nice to see Time Warner considering audible levels, which is a big concern for urban dwellers. In the future, the structure of our homes may be tied to how we enjoy our entertainment and its interesting to see how a cable company is preparing for that future push.

Original Post: NYTimes

Innovation Inbox #2

Great product design brings together the perfect marriage of form and function.

In this issue, we highlight cutting-edge products and technologies, for an inside look at how and why they were developed.

Enjoy!

Alltel's new Celltop

Company: InformationWeek

What is it: Allow customers a new way to organize content on their phone

Bona Fide: Puts interactive, changeable windows or "cells" on your phone's display. The idea is to let you scan through such information without having to press several buttons.

RFID Audiobar

Company: Mogens Jacobsen

What is it: A physical bar-like social environment that enable visitors to interact with sounds via RFID tagged bottles

Bona Fide: Each bottle is labeled with different keywords, by moving the bottles around, visitors can play sounds that match the keywords

QR Codes…The Next Big Thing From Japan?

Company: Various Japanese Companies

What is it: A new type of bar code that can hold more information than in the past, like alphanumeric characters and even Japanese text

Bona Fide: Can be used to direct mobile phone users to special websites to download brand ads, ringtones, character logos, viral videos, branded flash games and more.

Billboards with Face Recognition

Company: Microsoft

What is it: a prototype advertising system that uses a small video camera and facial-recognition so ftware to try to determine a viewer's gender and select an appropriate ad to display

Bona Fide: May be the future of the advertising industry, allowing agencies to provide targeted messaging in a real world environment such as Amazon and Google do with search

The Olive Martini Glass

Company: Beth Fuller

What is it: Redesign of the martini glass

Bona Fide: Designed to be held comfortably in the palm of the hand, while there is a hole in the lip of the glass to accommodate olives on a toothpick

Nokia's Answer to the iPhone?

Since the release of the iPhone, Nokia hasn't been sitting idle. They have long been considering the future of our mobile lives. Below is just one rendition of what is to come.

Stephen Colbert on Cingular and Deregulation

Emerging Tech Standards for 2007

It’s hard keep up with the tech Jones, but if you are going to try, make sure to add the following tech terms to your vocabulary in 2007

TV Standards
Full HD (aka 1080p)
Currently the best image quality you can get on high-definition television. But content is iffy.

Slingbox
A device from Sling Media that makes live or recorded tv from your home system available to PCs and handhelds over the internet

IPTV
Standards for Internet Protocol television – means TV delivered over the web


Mobility
Follow-me TV
Lets you start watching a record TV show in your family room, and then move to your bedroom without losing your place

HSDPA / EV-DO
Two superfast 3rd generation mobile networks, the former from Cingular Wireless, the latter from Sprint Nextel and Verizon Wireless

Home Servers
Put all your photos, music, and video on the server that can dish them up on different devices in your home


High Definition
Blu-ray Disc and HD-DVD
Two rival standards for next generation, high definition DVDs. It’s still too early to call a winner


GPS
Location Based Services
Global positioning chips in your phone lets companies figure out where you are and point you in the best local shop or restaurant


Set Top Box
HDMI
A new strand for connecting HDTV source, such as a cable set-top box, to an HD display. What is unknown is much the cable connection will cost (range between $80 to $120)

Mobile Internet Standard
Wi-MAX
A new mobile Internet standard, more advanced than Wi-Fi, that will soon be available from Sprint Nextel, Clearwire, and others

iPad

Coming to Dubai in 2009 the iPad a 23 story, $800 million apartment building shaped like an iPod and tilted an iPod-like 6 degrees for anchoring in a “docking station”

Original Post: The Dubai Life