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Tuesday, 03 February 2015 05:44

[Forum] If Traffic is 80% Video, What Should Operators Really Be Selling?

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[Forum] If Traffic is 80% Video, What Should Operators Really Be Selling? Image Credit: PCC Mobile Broadband

According to the Cisco Networking Index by Cisco, by 2018, close to 80% of all IP traffic will be IP video. That's the trend on the demand side. On the supply side, OTT video and OTT TV services are on the rise. At the same time, IPTV providers, cable TV providers and satellite TV providers are making their content accessible online, and on mobile devices via their own online sites and applications. On mobile networks, the scenario is expected to be pretty much the same. There is an unparalled growth in the consumption of mobile video content with a growing demand  for personalized yet multi-screen, anytime, anywhere video and TV services.

More importantly, Mobile Operators will be the ones transporting all these content, optimizing it for smooth delivery and enhancing it for end-user quality of experience, which means that they already have the technologies to deliver mobile video content, including video delivery platforms, content delivery networks and the suite of solutions to optimize content to users' data plan, device and the overall traffic condition. And they are continuing to invest in these.

Putting both traffic consumption trends and Operators' quest to differentiate their service offering with quality, content and other value added services, should Operators start looking beyond providing just the connectivity to actually establishing their own content channels and delivering mobile video as a service - OTT TV, OTT Video-on-Demand? With the right content partnerships and product bundling strategies, can mobile video services emerge as Operators' next big business?