Radio and television forced castration of internet TV: competition has been defeated

2014, radio and television is very busy.

Since June, SARFT has been issuing frequent postings, Request to clean up the video app in the Internet TV box (Ott Box). As of last week, the ban has finally worked, and video sites have been putting their own TV apps on the shelves. Although reluctantly, there is no way, because if they do not obey the instructions, they will face the risk of cancellation of the Internet audio-visual license. Under pressure, abandoning TV and protecting PCs is certainly a wise move.

It is worth mentioning is that the original SARFT want to pass the seven licensing side to achieve the goal, the number of Chinese, hundred-vision to show rectification determination, but the video site unmoved, or refused to stand down, or renamed to play The Edge. This makes Sarft quite angry, finally at the end of September to give a punch, to the Internet audio-visual license "threat", the ban has been issued in March to truly implement the moratorium.

"Ott box Industry will die", "Internet TV in the end" ... This is a pessimistic commentary on the ban on radio and television. Not allowed to live and playback TV programs, not allowed to play the United States, these previously sarft restrictions on the OTT terminal policy has made Internet TV can see the content is very limited, and the video site to eliminate the whole, but also let the Internet TV completely reduced to an empty shell.

In this context, the SARFT's rhetoric is rife. So what is the reason for Sarft to forcibly "castrate" Internet TV? If not, what kind of crisis will the broadcasting system face? Exploring the answers to these questions is a great help in judging the direction of the Internet TV industry.

Channel lost

SARFT's affiliated units have all levels of television, television network companies, as well as a large number of film, TV, broadcasting industry-related institutions. "China Radio and Film and Television Development Report 2014," the 2013 national radio and television industry total revenue reached 373.488 billion yuan.

Over the past more than 10 years, the rivalry between radio and television and telecommunications has never ceased. Initially, radio and television and telecommunications to build a network, although the duplication of construction has formed a huge waste of social resources, but the television business and communications business of the road, Non-interference. However, with the rapid popularization of the Internet, more and more TV programs moved to the PC, PAD, mobile screen, richer video resources, more convenient interactive way so that many users left the television, become a telecommunications operator's customers.

For example, Youku potatoes, Sohu Video, Archie art, video web sites, and so on, most of their content from the radio and television system, but the host of these massive video business network facilities is the telecommunications operator's broadband network. And the advent of the Internet television craze, but also to let the radio and television system fell to the last screen TV.

If SARFT allowed the OTT industry to develop freely, it would be easy to imagine that more and more users would opt for telecoms broadband and abandon cable TV. By then, the large-scale CATV network will be lost, unable to master the Channel and terminal will make the broadcasting system content advantage is gradually eroded.

To be aware, the three major operators of Chinese mobile, China Unicom, Telecom 2013 years of operating income of up to 630.2 billion, 295 billion, 321.6 billion yuan, the overall size of the radio and television system. If in a completely free competition market, radio and television's rout is no doubt.

Therefore, radio and television need time for a full incorporation of cable TV network and unified transformation, so that it has broadband communication functions, to help radio and television become the fourth largest telecommunications operators, and mobile, unicom, telecommunications rival, this is the country put forward "triple net integration" of the original intention. Imagine that if progress is fast enough, cable users will be able to use the radio and television network to achieve broadband Internet function, which is very valuable to the value of the existing assets and the continuation of the business model.

But the rapid development of the OTT industry has made the time for this task infinitely more urgent. Under the joint attack of Internet video enterprises and telecom operators, radio and television can only buy time windows through policy barriers. This May, radio and television's China Radio and TV Network Co., Ltd. was officially listed, the purpose is to bring together the cable TV network all over the country. But the division of these networks has a long history, the interests are intertwined, the incorporation of the task is more than arduous.

A radio and TV insider told reporters that China Radio and Television Network Co., Ltd. since its inception, the company leadership Fenfu around the investigation, to explore feasible integration programs, busy and exhausted, leave them time is not much.

Therefore, delaying the development of Internet television industry, in fact, radio and television to protect their own channels of helplessness.

Business model Crisis

In addition to the danger of being replaced by telecoms operators on the web, the administration's fear of the OTT industry comes from the potential threat posed by the latter's business model.

Commercial advertising has long been a pillar of revenue for the broadcasting system. Television stations buy content from film and television production companies, earning revenue through copyright distribution and advertising. This model has long been emulated by major video sites. And in the scramble for quality content, these video sites are becoming rivals for television. They not only and television for film and television works bidding, but also set up their own film and television companies, the development of homemade drama, actively upstream infiltration.

To music as an example, with the super, the NBA and other sporting events, so that it has a large number of high-quality sports programs, Sohu Video For example, its many years to buy a large number of American opera copyright, but also the lack of resources of the television station. In addition, including Archie Arts, Youku potatoes and other enterprises, are active in the "Digging people" from the television, a large number of outstanding program producers are leaving the system, embracing Internet enterprises.

It can be said that in the past television and video sites are not clear-cut, television in the network of cable TV, video sites in the Internet to dominate. But the Internet television industry has put the two on the same platform, exactly, is the video site of the "wolf" into the living room. The system has been tied for a long time, radio and television can not compete head-on with the video site.

More frightening is that the music as a representative of the video site from the construction of ecological practices, it looks like internet companies set up a separate radio and television stations. They have channels, can be on demand, rich in resources, but also to the terminal more control capacity. If it is allowed to develop, it will be a matter of sooner or later that advertisers are robbed of the lottery. After all, advertisers follow users.

SARFT has been trying to control the entire OTT industry through the seven major licensees, but the facts have not developed as expected. Many licensees for the benefit of the end of the practice of the manufacturers open one eye, so that sarft increasingly into a passive position. Therefore, the regulation of OTT industry, Sarft chose to start from the licensing side. Through the licensing system strictly control the OTT industry, radio and television want to ensure their own in the Internet TV industry, and Internet enterprises, can only become content providers to participate in the division.

As to how the Internet enterprises respond, will not accept this affiliation, it depends on the future of the game back and forth between the two sides.

To be sure, Sarft's strict control will continue, it is related to their own life and death, must strive for more space and time for reform. But in the control, how to use internal innovation to pull users back to the television is more need to think about the problem. Otherwise, these bans have no meaning but to erase an innovative industry.

(Responsible editor: Lvguang)