TV Cloud: The Scramble for living room entertainment

Television is one of the 8 traditional industries that have been changed by the Internet for a long time, when it is the most important way for people to get information and entertainment.

In the past three years, the TV power rate in Beijing has dropped from 70% to 30%. In the face of new media technology, especially the impact of video sites, more and more people, especially the younger generation began to abandon television.

With the advent of Internet television, mobile phones, tablets, computers and television "four-screen" interaction, the living room of the TV, the larger display, clearer image effect, ushered in a new round of user return.

The user's living room, can have Microsoft's Xbox, can have Apple TV, can have the music, and so on all kinds of box, you can also each TV manufacturers launched a variety of televisions, living room war smoke.

Internet Impact TV Service

The eye economy represented by Internet business has changed the growth curve of television business.

Data from Netflix and Comcast, the largest cable television company in the Internet, showed that Netflix users had surpassed Comcast paid subscribers in the first quarter of 2011. The entire American cable TV operators, including Comcast, are embracing the internet, and the combination of cable TV and the internet is a trend.

In the past 50 years, the living room has been the target of the big companies, but none of them have been successful. At the same time, PCs, smartphones and tablets are constantly updating iterations, and new features are being launched. At the same time, TV and set-top box interface is always so ugly, even the design of remote control is not a trace of interest.

Specific to the Chinese market, a group of data can show the rapid growth of internet video. By the end of December 2011, the number of Internet video users in China increased to 325 million. In contrast, cable TV digital users for many years, as of the end of June 2012 just broke through 100 million.

Fusion Network editor-in-chief Wu Chunyong that, because of the television system too pay attention to the social functions of TV and public welfare functions, there are various restrictions on television based innovation capacity is insufficient, over the years television innovation has been very slow.

Different users have different needs for TV programs, and no media ecosystem can be perfect. People are convinced that it will only be a matter of time before people abandon their traditional set-top boxes when there is a TV program that covers a wide range of television and has a good experience.

If Safari and Chrome are smart to give users the most frequently visited URLs when they open their browsers, there's no reason for future TV devices to do that. A real smart set-top box device should be able to make a viewing choice for the user while the user turns on the TV, and start playing the recommended TV.

User return to living room entertainment

In recent years, the concept and products of intelligent TV, Cloud TV, intelligent 3D TV and so on have been surging, which brings a new upsurge in the traditional entertainment terminal of TV. On the other hand, Internet television, as a video service based on open Internet, is no longer confined to televisions, but integrates computers, set-top boxes, tablets and smartphones in an orderly fashion, and is favored by younger generations of users.

Box dream is not now only, as early as in July 2005, Shanda has launched a grand box, through the box integrated TV, home entertainment, the TV upgraded to network terminals, so that users can enjoy interactive entertainment and information through television. A few months later, SARFT issued the name of the grand box is illegal.

Aside from policy factors, when the grand box was too narrow network bandwidth, poor network conditions, power mismatch and other problems frequently panic. People can tolerate a PC crash, but can't sit on the couch in front of the TV and get up and restart the machine.

A few years later, the speed of the network makes Internet TV possible in the user experience.

Earlier this year, the Ministry began to promote broadband popularization of the project, the overall goal is to complete the new FTTH (fiber broadband) coverage of more than 35 million households, the use of 4M and above broadband access products more than 50% users, new fixed broadband access to internet households more than 20 million households.

From Beijing, Shanghai and other developed areas, Shanghai's fiber-optic users to upgrade to at least 10M speed, up to 30M rate, copper cable access to domestic customers into the optical network project, you can upgrade to more than 4M free rate.

Operators need to speed up the corresponding business as a driver, internet television business is one of them, through the bundle of business bundles to consumers, operators and service providers can benefit.

The authenticity of the video and the mass of the user to bring a high-quality video experience opportunities.

Over the past three years, Youku, potatoes, exotic arts and other video manufacturers invested heavily, through the fight against piracy to solve the problem of video authenticity. Take Youku for example, in TV dramas, as of January 2012, the total number of Youku TV dramas exceeded 60,000 episodes. Film, Youku has been with Disney, Warner, 20th century Foss, lions door and many other film production companies signed, and accumulated a lot of film and television companies cooperation resources and copyrights.

There is also the growing clarity of policy.

October 2011, SARFT issued the "holding of Internet television Licensing agency Operation management Requirements" (wide-run hair network word [2011]181) file, the end of the Internet TV set-top box blind development, no policy can be found in the gray era. The article formally will be the internet TV set-top box, the network High-definition player Terminal products, into the Internet TV integrated Computer Management scope.

November 14, Millet company released "Millet Box", like a catfish stirred the internet TV set-top box market. Have LEI investment experience, Millet mobile phone network marketing effect to do a lesson, it is easy to believe that the Millet box into this field, is not simply for millet mobile phone to add a fever-grade accessories.

Wu Chunyong that, Lei is good at Capital operation, Network marketing is the weakest of the radio and television license, millet and other Internet enterprises into this field can bring new business model and change.

Just a short time ago, innovation workshop completed the music to see the company's subsidiary music as a new investment process, formally become happy to see new shareholders. First there is music, after millet, internet companies in the future to the television screen smell more and more thick.

How big is the cake in this market?

At present, OTT industry has a common understanding of the business model, one is free content, companies such as electricity and other value-added services such as advertising, the other is paid content, content providers to add quality services.

The ideas of the manufacturers that launch the box are different. Apple and Millet are selling hardware, gifted friends mainly push the Internet video services, hundred-vision, China, etc. are to increase the new business form, Live + on-demand combination of forms.

A person who makes boxes says the market can be big, just as every home buys a VCD or DVD, and Internet TV set-top boxes can reach such a market.

It is estimated that this year, the Internet TV terminal sales of only 4 million units, next year, Internet TV terminal sales can reach 10 million units.

Only selling hardware, but the box industry seems to be a niche market. Lei that the introduction of the Millet box a little "do not do." Apple CEO Cook treats Apple TV as a "hobby". According to earnings figures released in July this year, Apple TV has shipped 4 million units in the fiscal year, with 1.3 million in the third quarter.

Whether or not it is a niche market, the entry of many manufacturers has reflected the importance of this field. In the past, manufacturers were willing to spend a lot of time optimizing the interface of a tablet or smartphone. When we start to pay attention to television, there will be a large number of industry bosses and start-ups to compete, the direct result of competition is that we will have a unified user interface, with streaming media video, New TV equipment for music and gaming functions.

(Responsible editor: Schpeppen)