Hardware
India early adapter of new technology but not IPTV: Dataxis
NEW DELHI: India stands out as an early adapter of latest technology despite being a price sensitive market, according to a Dataxis Research report.
While on the one hand, India has the highest DTH subscribers as well as HDTV subscribers, on the other, public sector companies MTNL and BSNL have given up their hopes on IPTV. Airtel, ACT and Reliance are retaining the service only in few circles.
India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are the three countries with active IPTV subscriber base in the SAARC region.
IPTV is still evolving and is not widely accepted as a pay-TV model by SAARC countries. The total active IPTV subscriber base in SAARC (adding these three countries) will be around 270,000+.
Sri Lanka’s IPTV subscriber base contributes to nearly 48 per cent of the overall SAARC IPTV subscribers, followed by Pakistan and India with about 33 per cent and 18 per cent respectively.
Sri Lanka and Pakistan are showing high interest in pushing IPTV. On the other hand, Nepal’s internet service providers are planning to launch commercial IPTV services by the end of 2015.
Meanwhile, the video markets of 12 East Asia Pacific countries tracked by Dataxis are forecast to generate total digital video revenues of $4.31 billion in 2017 – surpassing the physical video market for the first time driven by fast-growing, high-speed broadband penetration.
APAC Video Market 2015 analyses the transformation of the video market across the 12 countries covered over the period 2007-18, including physical and digital video unit sales, rentals, revenues and forecasts, as well as profiling each market and the individual digital video services available.
The four main markets in the region (Australia, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea) together accounted for about 96 per cent of total digital and physical video revenues end-2014, with Australia and Japan alone generating about $5.4 billion in physical video revenues, representing more than 90 per cent of total physical revenues across the region.
However, South East Asia is plagued by piracy and the official physical video market is almost negligible. Unauthorised CDs, VCDs, DVDs and CD ROMs proliferate due to the lack of affordable digital content and low disposable incomes. Indonesia, for example, had 5.75 million Pay-TV subscribers by end-2014, but only two Pay-TV players offered VOD services and Dataxis estimates that just 1.5 per cent of Indonesian TV households will be VOD-enabled by 2018.
Hardware
Specs Inc. partners with Qualcomm for next-generation smart glasses
Snap subsidiary to power future Specs with Snapdragon XR platforms.
MUMBAI: Snap’s Specs are about to get a serious upgrade and this time, they’re teaming up with Qualcomm to make sure the future looks crystal clear. Specs Inc., a Snap subsidiary, has announced a multi-year strategic agreement with Qualcomm Technologies to power future generations of its advanced smart eyewear with Snapdragon system-on-a-chip (SoC) technology.
This marks the first flagship engagement for Specs Inc., which is preparing to launch its standalone, see-through smart glasses for consumers later this year. The Specs are designed to seamlessly blend digital experiences into the physical world, allowing users to see, hear, and interact with digital content as if it were part of their real surroundings.
By integrating Snapdragon XR platforms, the glasses will benefit from edge AI and high-performance, low-power computing. This combination enables intelligent, context-aware experiences to run directly on the device, delivering faster and more private interactions.
The partnership builds on more than five years of collaboration between Snap and Qualcomm, during which Snapdragon platforms have powered multiple generations of Snap’s Spectacles.
Snap Inc., co-founder and CEO Evan Spiegel said, “We believe the future of computing will be more human and grounded in the real world. Our work with Qualcomm provides a strong foundation for the future of Specs, bringing advanced technology and performance that pushes the boundaries of what’s possible.”
Qualcomm Incorporated president and CEO Cristiano Amon added, “The next era of computing will be defined by devices that understand what you see, hear and say, and respond instantly to the world around you. Our collaboration on Specs will enable power-efficient interactive AR devices that feel natural and intuitive.”
The agreement establishes a scalable foundation for developers and partners building experiences for Specs, supporting a predictable product roadmap and increasingly sophisticated digital interactions over time.
In a world racing toward augmented reality, Specs Inc. and Qualcomm are ensuring that the next pair of smart glasses doesn’t just look good on paper, they perform brilliantly in real life. The future of wearable computing just got a powerful new lens.
