TimeWarner is now one more step closer to controlling its service destiny
http://www.cedmagazine.com/cedailydirect/2004/0504/cedaily040519.htm
This May 2004 is interesting to comment on.
- TimeWarner Cable is pursuing the same strategy than Comcast: positionning TVGuide-Gemstar as a data feed provider only; for economic and service direction reasons, the two cable behemoths have now separated the guide data business from the IPR and the implementation
- TimeWarner Cable, by making available its own OCAP middleware solution, implements the strategy “invented” by Canal+ Satellite, in France, about 15 years ago: it gives them a negotiation edge against the OEM providers, forcing them to (i) drop their price by $ 10 to $ 15 per STB for the licensing of the OCAP platform and (ii) commoditizing the hardware solution.
- The big loosers of this trend will be Scientific-Atlanta and Motorola which in the long run will start seeing a lot of price pressure on their STB business from new Asian entrants
- TimeWarner Cable stands a chance to maintain control over the “platform” by the IPG roadmap “chokepoint”, this also commoditizing the underlying platform layers; their control of the VOD APIs and the Master Application will be the next area to keep track on, as this will enable TimeWarner Cable to establish how services are presented to the consumer.
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