A new study by Plum Consulting argues that using the so-called L-Band in Europe (1452-1492 MHz) for a terrestrial supplemental mobile downlink could address burgeoning requirements for download capacity in the mobile sector, and generate net present value of up to €54bn over ten years.
Plum notes there is currently”a significant asymmetry of mobile communications traffic, with up to eight times as much data being downloaded than is being uploaded.” This is due to the very rich content being made available, ranging from videos, to apps and to books.
Plum concludes that the L-Band is “the ideal solution, not just to help address the spectrum crunch but as an important step forward in achieving the EU’s Digital Agenda target of providing 30Mbps access to 100% of European citizens by 2020.”
Plum Consulting: ‘Using L-Band for mobile downloads in EU could generate €54bn over 10 years’
Heavy Netflix streamers bear out pay-TV ‘cord-cutting’ fears
New research from The Diffusion Group suggests that although the propensity for ‘cord-cutting’ (i.e. downgrading or termination of pay-TV subscriptions) in the USA is mainly associated with economic stringency, this changes amongst heavy users of Netflix video streaming.
TDG found that 61% of moderate to heavy Netflix streamers cited online video usage as the top reason why they would do so. Only 24% of this group cited economic issues as their main rationale.
For the average Netflix user, however, the finding was reversed: only a third would cord-cut because they thought use of online video was substitutive.
Verimatrix introduces StreamMark watermarking to protect early-release premium VOD
Security solutions provider Verimatrix has launched its new watermarking technology, StreamMark, to address the embryonic market for ‘early release’ premium VOD content in the USA.
The new market was engendered by an FCC waiver last year which allowed cable operators to use so-called “selectable output control” technology to prevent viewers from recording a movie while being shown on a TV set.
The studios had been reluctant to allow premium VOD content to be released ahead of the standard four-month moratorium between first-run theatrical showings and home video release without such a blocking technology being allowed.
The FCC’s attempt to introduce a similar control measure, the ‘broadcast flag‘, was over-turned by a court ruling in 2005.
StreamMark’s notable features appear to be that it works server-side (rather than in the set-top box), and can be applied to encrypted content without the need to access the keys, using a process called ‘byte replacement’.
The idea is that for each movie the system provides a set of marked/altered frames to substitute for the original ones. Then, each time the movie is streamed, the system designates a unique subset of these frames to be replaced on the fly at the server.
This unique combination of substituted frames identifies each one-to-one stream, and therefore the user ordering it.
If that stream is pirated – for example by the user recording the movie off their HDTV display using an HD camcorder and making it available online – the watermark should persist, revealing the identify of the pirating household.
ADD: Within days of the Verimatrix announcement, VOD specialists SeaChange International and watermarking firm Civolution said they would be collaborating to offer the latter’s NexGuard forensic watermarking for premium video-on-demand (VOD), targeted at cable operators looking to launch early release content.
Ultraviolet – who is responsible?
A year after launch the Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem (DECE) has unveiled initial technical specifications – now branded ‘Ultraviolet’.
Ultraviolet’s major backers are the Hollywood studios, who hope to fight piracy by enabling users to legitimately access content on multiple devices. Ultraviolet’s membership list now encompasses 62 companies including high-profile UK players such as BSkyB, BT, Filmflex, Lovefilm, NDS, and Red Bee Media.
The Ultraviolet technology is based on the use of a common file format for digital content distribution controlled by a cloud-based authentication and account management hub using multiple content protection technologies. It will become available in the UK and Canada later this year (2011).
However, the creation of interoperable systems such as these is challenging from a security stand-point. In a traditional, vertically-integrated pay-TV set-up, the players in the chain each assume well-defined responsibilities and liabilities: in general, the operator is held responsible by the rights-holder for end-to-end security, the security vendor held responsible by the operator for any security breaches, and the CPE vendor held responsible by the security vendor for the robustness of its hardware.
This system works because of the tight control exercised by the operator over the platform and the fact that there exist only a limited number of implementations to test and maintain. But in a horizontal retail market with multiple devices and DRMs the model is more complicated: the chain of responsibility actually becomes a set of discrete responsibilities, with no clear stakeholder for the end-to-end platform security.
Being able to buy a movie once and watch it on any Ultraviolet device anytime, anywhere, will certainly be an attractive value proposition to consumers – but Ultraviolet implementation faces significant technical hurdles, including the content security risk, which should not be underestimated.
To find out more about Farncombe’s content security expertise, please contact Lara Lerville at Farncombe’s Paris office.
Microsoft working on over-the-top virtual platform: another “topware”?
Reuters has reported that Microsoft is in talks with pay-TV networks to roll out its own subscription service based on a “virtual cable operator” model. According to Reuters’ confidential sources, the service would not roll out for at least another year.
There is increasing availability of over-the-top content (catch-up and premium) on the Internet – but lack of standards for non-PC connected devices has made it hard for content providers to reach multiple distribution channels, as virtually every device requires adjustments to their service.
Initiatives such as YouView in the UK and Google TV in the USA are examples of ‘topware’ – specialised over-the-top middleware specifications that can be used across devices – and could represent a step forward in the standardisation of OTT services for connected devices (see image below – click to enlarge).
However, as demonstrated by the ‘Internet TV Principles’ charter published last week by French broadcasters, content providers are inherently uncomfortable with players such as Google TV, who they fear will sell advertising over their content. Walled-garden connected platforms such as Youview* and country-specific HbbTV initiatives (such as TNT 2.0 in France) are more likely to succeed in developing a secure environment where content providers feel under control.
As more premium content becomes available online and more devices implement topware specifications, the major challenge for these platforms will be to ensure that content is secure and specifications are correctly implemented by manufacturers.
With its dominance in the DRM space as well as the TV middleware experience acquired through its Mediaroom product, Microsoft will be the platform best-positioned to address connected devices and become the de facto standard for over-the-top services – provided it can make content providers comfortable with its approach.
*As of November 2010, Youview (former Canvas) shareholders include the BBC, Channel 4, Arqiva, ITV, BT, TalkTalk and Five
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