The fate of the millet box is beginning to enter a critical moment

Absrtact: The fate of the Millet box begins to enter the critical moment. From 20 o'clock November 22 night, millet this month the latest Internet set-top box products Millet box suspended all video content services. A number of sources from the video and TV box industry have revealed that radio and television general

The fate of the Millet box began to enter a critical moment.

From 20 o'clock November 22 night, millet this month the latest Internet set-top box products Millet box suspended all video content services. A number of sources from the video and TV box industry say that SARFT and other authorities are starting to investigate the millet box.

This means that if millet can not break through the licensing obstacles in a short time, it will face a full stop risk, if can explore a government, industry all can accept the plan, in the rigid policy door squeeze a seam, millet will open a new blue ocean.

The biggest policy hurdle for the Millet box is the "holding of Internet television licensing agency operating management requirements" issued by SARFT (the industry says 181th). According to this document, to make a set-top box can only choose to connect the SARFT approved the Internet TV content service provider set up a legitimate content service platform.

and currently through the SARFT acceptance of the platform only 7 (that is, 7 major licensees), respectively, are: CNTV, hundred-Vision, southern Media, China, the Chinese radio and television stations CIBN, Hunan Radio and television and the national radio cnbn--central wide broadcast TV network station. This means that the millet set-top box to be compliant, you must find a partner in these seven.

In addition, the 181th article also stipulates that the Internet television integration platform can not be linked to the Web site set up on the public Internet, can not be directly available to users on the public Internet content. Currently available in the Millet box Engineering tester does not access any broadcast control platform, but directly with Tencent, Sohu and other content-side links, their copyright content directly to the user. These two points violate the provisions of article 181th.

SARFT Department in charge of a deputy director in the connection with Sina technology, said, "The documents are there, according to the document to do." "When it comes to the regulation of Millet, the deputy director is noncommittal."

Compliance is not difficult

In fact, the millet box is not difficult to conform to national rules.

At the November 14 press conference, Millet Technology CEO Lei said "The Millet box will certainly be listed when the relevant regulations." Millet insiders revealed that Millet will be with the license plate number of cooperation, in the Conference on the day of the demonstration on the machine has built a number of Chinese TV content entrance.

According to the current regulation of SARFT, the Internet TV platform implements "content Service + integrated business" dual licence control. Integrated licensing agencies selected to cooperate with the end products (including one machine and set-top box), the need to submit the client number before the application, by the SARFT in accordance with the uniform distribution, volume licensing, a number of one machine, such as the number rules issued, the licensing authority can be within the scope of the number of

"This rule means that the millet box not only through the above seven licensing platform for content ' broadcast control ', but also have the client number, two conditions are indispensable. "Senior Media, the original Unicom video company director Zhang Lei said, through the Millet box demolition machine found that there is a client number, but also belong to the number of China." This shows that the Millet box hardware compliance, just software updates, access to the number of broadcast control platform to complete compliance.

And the market also has a reference to millet case-Le video network. It is the first Internet company to set foot in a TV box, and he does not hold a licence, but rather uses the same approach as CNTV.

According to the agreement signed by Le and Cntv, CNTV is responsible for the overall operation and management of Internet TV business, provides content distribution platform and broadcast control platform in line with SARFT policy requirements, provides users with their own and third party program content, and carries out broadcast control audit.

le-Vision is responsible for the "music video tv Cloud" of the terminal research and development, production, operations and services, to provide CNTV content and CDN distribution resources.

Since there are ready-made reference cases, the Millet box only need software upgrades, clutch rules only one step away, why is millet not willing to immediately compliance? The answer is that it will be completely uncompetitive.

The key is how to be both compliant and competitive.

A senior personage in the industry to Sina Technology, said, millet box most competitive place is the aggregation of Sohu video, Tencent video and other Third-party video site content, and let users have a comfortable, fluent viewing experience. If in accordance with the provisions of article 181th, the content must be provided by the licensing party, or its own copyright content, millet can only degenerate into a pure hardware manufacturer.

"As an internet company, Millet is certainly not to make a sale of hardware money, but to see the follow-up ads, pay the play, such as the larger market." "If millet were to access the licensing system from the start, the user would see a very disappointing millet box," the source said. "Not for marketing reasons. Generally, the licensing side of the platform user experience is poor, a lot of restrictions. ”

For example, in the cooperation agreement between the music and CNTV, it strictly stipulates that CNTV has the right of final adjudication, publication and control over all the contents of the program. For the content that does not conform to the state, superior authorities and the propaganda policy of CCTV, CNTV has the right to refuse to publish or line up. Le view can only make suggestions on the content of the program, not by CNTV permission to provide content.

A millet insider revealed that the future possible path of millet box is to sell a product in line with the state regulations, equipped with a platform for broadcast control, and then provide cracking tools or upgrade packages in the forum, so that users can brush into a "jailbreak system" to enjoy millet to provide all the functions.

The person said that with Millet's current influence and visibility, from the current stringent market regulation to squeeze a seam should be hopeful. "The authorities have released signals of policy loosening. ”

Oriental Securities analyst June revealed that a few months ago, SARFT has issued an internet TV set-top box number to the Integrated licensing Authority, "the past closed control is the main reason to curb the development of the domestic set-top box industry." This is the last year, Sarft put the Internet set-top box into the 181th text supervision, another major policy breakthrough. ”

In his view, the release means that the regulatory policy of active openness, is expected to greatly promote the set-top box industry into a formalized, legalized development path. At the same time, however, the number of unnamed Internet television terminals (including grey set-top boxes) sold on the market faces greater policy risk.

A person in the industry told Sina Technology, now the Internet set-top box industry people are looking at millet, if they can kill a road, so lurking in the industry around the many manufacturers will be waiting for the move, kill into the market. "The most unwilling to see the scene is the policy orientation is unclear, we continue to play the edge, make a little money, that market is still backwater." ”