So what are we to make of hardware companies assuming the role of gatekeeper with their own walled IPTV gardens? This year Panasonic migrates its Viera Cast IPTV service to Viera Connect, a cloud based app-driven connected TV offering on a much grander scale.
Not only will Viera Connect offer a significantly richer viewer experience, but there is provision for sports, health and fitness activities and games as well.
CONNECT: For 2011, Panasonic is swapping out its Viera Cast IPTV portal for the cloud based, app-driven Viera Connect platform
New content
Tsuyuzaki says hardware brands are not going into competition with media companies. "It's hard to imagine CE manufacturers creating their own networks to compete with traditional networks," he says, adding the sheer cost of licensing content prohibits that kind of direction.
"We need to be practical and find innovations focused on what the consumer wants, while still making a reasonable profit for reinvestment."
Instead he predicts that brands like Panasonic will take advantage of the proliferation of new content by developing technologies that enable seamless multiroom viewing.
He says there will be a growing desire to "watch in and out of the home via second screens such as a tablet or laptop," perhaps with an ability to filter the content deluge based on viewing preferences.
MISSING LINK: Panasonic believes tablet devices will provide the missing link between the proliferation of IPTV service and consumer electronics
"I think consumers will simply want the ability to take media anywhere, anytime and anyhow from any provider."
Ultimately he says hardware manufacturers will need to collaborate with traditional content and new media providers.
"It's still a work in progress and it's going to take a little more time to shake out but as with any successful market innovation we must follow consumer behaviour and usage patterns in order to prosper.
"If there are no real consumer benefits, there's no point in proceeding. But I think if we can combine the dynamic nature of the internet with the rich content that only linear programming can provide we can provide a legitimately new experience. Time will tell."
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