Three in four broadcasters are planning to deliver high definition content over the web, according to research in the US by Akamai Technologies and Broadband Directions.
Here, "broadcaster" is taken to mean any traditional over-the-air or cable TV broadcaster, online publisher, sports leagues, and social media sites.
I don't have access to the source, so can't see how this proportion is broken down among traditional and online publishers, but it's still a significant figure.
Half of the respondents said that they already offered HD content online, or planned to within the next 12 months, which 80% saying they planned to within the next 24 months.
It would be interesting to see a similar survey conducted with UK broadcasters. Certainly standard definition video delivery is becoming more popular, with the likes of BBC, Sky, BT, Virgin Media, Channel 4, Five, Tiscali, and others offering a variety of Internet streaming, downloads, and TV over the Internet services.
If this number of broadcasters follow through to deliver on their intentions, it's going to make issues surrounding bandwidth, Net Neutrality, and ISP incentive even more pressing.
(Via The Blogging Times)
Leave a comment