June 23, 2017
No matter which headline you read, the tug of war over cord cutting isn’t going away any time soon. While some studies point to a willingness by subscribers to explore options and projected declines in industry valuations, there are those who maintain that pay-TV revenue is still on an upswing and that operators are marshaling their innovation, their network resources, and their presence in the home to keep the forces of cutting at bay.
Who’s right? Our take
is that pay-TV has tremendous advantages, and is growing increasingly
sophisticated in its ability to leverage them.
While alternative sources of video such as Netflix, Amazon and YouTube
have changed the dynamics of how content is viewed, none of those can match
pay-TV’s position as the direct link to the consumer. As Mari
Silbey points out, operators are pricing bundles to incentivize customers
to retain video services.
What’s more, technologies are emerging that can strengthen
the bond between pay-TV and subscribers.
Cloud-based user
interfaces are enabling operators to deliver the same experience across
set-top boxes and mobile devices, eliminating the limitations of legacy STB software
stacks. These UIs also allow personalization that
empowers contextual search, discovery and recommendations across a vast array
of Web, operator-provided and personal content sources. Advanced network protection
capabilities are providing proactive network monitoring that can enable home
security and Internet of Things (IoT) services.
There’s no question that cord-cutting is real, and that it’s
impact
is being watched
closely by the nation’s largest pay-TV operators. But given the industry’s ability to transform
user experiences and service bundles, there’s plenty of opportunity for it to
emerge from this battle stronger and more competitive than ever.
Posted by Jill OToole at 1:17 AM