DTH
IPTV worldwide subscribers reach 3.6 million
MUMBAI: The latest worldwide IPTV research from research firm Canalys shows how the number of commercial IPTV launches escalated in 2006, and suggests that IPTV services are now moving into the mainstream.
Worldwide subscribers have reached 3.6 million Western Europe leads, with growth expected in emerging markets this year.
Most major incumbent telecoms providers have launched commercial services and the market is becoming increasingly competitive with the entry of alternative operators, such as ISPs and energy companies.
Canalys senior analyst Nadia Griffiths says, “2007 will see the competitive landscape become even fiercer as IPTV services from established service providers will be challenged by aggressively priced alternatives from Web TV, cable, satellite and content companies. These are all contenders for a share of the limited wallet of most consumers”.
Western Europe has 2.4 million IPTV subscribers. The sheer number of operators in the region provides its IPTV scale, and major investments in backbone infrastructure are being made as providers rush to build substantial subscriber bases. The IPTV market is highly fragmented. The top five providers account for over 60 per cent of all subscribers, but the rush of service launches by new entrants in 2006 means that there are numerous companies with only a few thousand subscribers each.
The top three providers globally according to Canalys are PCCW on 18.2 per cent share, France Telecom with 16.8 per cent and Free Telecom on 14 per cent. These are joined in the top five by Telefonica and Fastweb.
Threats One of the major threats for many IPTV service providers is the quality of networking once IPTV services become fully fledged. Canalys VP Alessandra Fitzpatrick says, “IPTV networks will quickly become the most complex and bandwidth intensive that have ever existed. Many service providers have invested millions of euros on network upgrades, but it remains unproven whether IPTV networks can scale into the millions without performance degrading and response times slowing, or even collapsing altogether.
“Another infrastructure challenge is that service providers will quickly have to learn how to manage multiple billing systems and content across large server farms and SANs, while maintaining the highest quality of service.”
The future, however, looks promising. In 2007, Canalys predicts significant uptake of IPTV in the Asia Pacific region. Hong Kong is already a mature IPTV market, and growth will come from emerging markets such as India and China, following large investments into IPTV deployments there. Australia is also finally moving into the commercial phase of its IPTV offerings, which will lead to fast roll-outs of services in 2007. North America will be another major growth area, with AT&T and Verizon already pushing nationwide roll-outs of IPTV services. Western Europe though will continue to lead and set the pace globally for the IPTV industry in the year ahead.
DTH Operator
JC Flowers withdraws NCLT plea against Dish TV over EGM demand
Move eases pressure on DTH firm as long-running shareholder dispute cools
MUMBAI: In a breather for Dish TV India, JC Flowers Asset Reconstruction has withdrawn its petition before the National Company Law Tribunal seeking directions to convene an extraordinary general meeting.
The development was disclosed by Dish TV in a regulatory filing, confirming that the petitioner chose to withdraw the case during a hearing at the Mumbai bench of the tribunal. A detailed order from the bench is still awaited.
The petition, originally filed under Sections 98 to 100 of the Companies Act, 2013, sought to push for an extraordinary general meeting to address governance issues at the company. The case had its roots in a prolonged shareholder tussle dating back to 2021, when Yes Bank, then the largest shareholder, was at odds with the promoter group led by Subhash Chandra over board reconstitution.
JC Flowers had stepped into the picture as an assignee of Yes Bank’s stressed assets, effectively continuing the legal push initiated earlier. The withdrawal now signals a pause, if not a closure, to that chapter of dispute.
While the reasons behind the withdrawal have not been formally detailed, the move reduces immediate legal pressure on Dish TV, which has been navigating both operational and regulatory challenges in recent years.
For now, the focus shifts back to the company’s business fundamentals, even as the legal dust settles, at least temporarily, on one of its more closely watched shareholder battles.
