IEC Newsletter

Without Management, Complex Technology Will Inhibit the Success of IPTV

By Sanjay Castelino, Vice President of Industry Marketing, Motive, Inc.

With predictions that global Internet protocol television (IPTV) subscriber numbers will top 53 million by 2009 (Infonetics Research), providers are rushing to deliver these digital services in order to capitalize on this potentially lucrative market. However, to create a truly successful and profitable service, providers must deliver a superior customer experience, rock-solid stability, and fast, effective service and support from the outset. A crucial part of this will be overcoming the technical hurdles.

Despite the predictions and hype, the rollout of IPTV continues to be plagued by complicated technical issues. Building a next-generation network (NGN) capable of supporting IPTV involves sophisticated network infrastructure as well as multiple devices in the home. Compounding this are consumer expectations that IPTV should "just work" at least as well as, if not better than, traditional television services. Successful IPTV deployments will need to overcome these problems by shielding consumers from unfamiliar and complex technologies and providing services that are simple and easy to use, ultimately ensuring a positive end-user experience.

Service providers are discovering that IPTV not only offers growth opportunities, but also carries a number of risks due to the complexity of the technology. Consumers simply will not stand for unreliable and problem-prone services, and if the IPTV service fails, the provider risks the consumer unsubscribing not just from this service, but also from the whole bundle. For this reason, providers are moving cautiously to avoid any issues that might contribute to the failure of an IPTV service, and delays in IPTV rollouts by major providers point to the fact that this is not yet a straightforward service. This is a sign of the inherent complexity of such a massive undertaking and underlines the fact that service providers must tread carefully to ensure they can offer a positive customer experience from day one, which is essential if they are to both win and hold on to customers.

To deploy an IPTV service that is successful in the long term, providers must ensure that consumers have confidence in their service, and this involves hiding the technological complexity. All the devices needed for such deployments are subject to constant change, creating a dynamic, highly distributed new architecture that makes it challenging for providers to deliver and manage their IPTV services. Indeed, according to Motive's current estimates, providers can expect an average of two and a half support calls per subscriber within the first 30 days of a typical installation, many of which will result in a technician visiting the subscriber's home. After the first 30 days, providers can expect 5.6 calls per subscriber per year, each lasting an average of 20 minutes. As a result, providers can expect as much as 20 percent of their revenue from IPTV services to be consumed by support costs. However, the frequency with which problems occur not only negatively impacts profit margins, but also leads to dissatisfied customers.

To solve technical problems, consumers will first call the help desk. In reality, four main problems—troubleshooting video, system configuration, troubleshooting connection, and information—account for 86 percent of all calls. With the same faults occurring repeatedly, providers need to put an effective system in place to deal with these common issues. This is especially important given that IPTV is being placed in to the hands of non-technical consumers who will call the provider at the first sign of any glitch.

Currently service providers deal with problems in an inefficient, ineffective, and expensive way. First-call resolution rates are low and problems often recur, leading to greater customer dissatisfaction and greater impact on profit margins. The overall cost of managing digital services is very high, with nearly all technical support calls requiring live assistance from a customer service representative. And when problems recur, a truck roll is usually deployed—this "solution" is costly for the provider and inconvenient for the customer. Equally, providers lose revenue when the IPTV service is down, impacting further on profit margins. Every call to the help desk and truck roll lengthens time to profitability for the provider and increases the risk of customer churn.

Reducing the cost of technical support issues is crucial to the success of an IPTV deployment. Given the huge capital costs of building networks capable of supporting IPTV, losing customers over technical problems is simply not an option for today's IPTV service provider if it wants to stay competitive.

One solution is to build self-management into IPTV services, thereby reducing the cost of technical support and improving the time to profitability for providers. By using intelligent automation, service providers can empower users to help themselves by identifying the problem with a faulty service or fixing the problem without contacting the call center. By building customer service into the viewing experience, providers can ensure increased customer satisfaction and loyalty—and even bigger revenue streams.

For more complex problems, remote management capabilities should be provided for call center representatives. This will give them real-time visibility and control over the IPTV system, including quick access to diagnostic information. Empowered with this information, call center representatives can quickly isolate trouble spots and reduce the chance for problem recurrences. By building such self-management into IPTV services from the outset, service providers can expect to dramatically reduce the operational costs required to roll out and support new services while providing a convenient and rewarding experience for their subscribers.

With IPTV uptake expected to grow at a phenomenal rate, providers are rushing to make the most of this opportunity. But providers will need to act fast to become successful in this emerging market. IPTV management technology that automatically installs and services, diagnoses, and repairs problems—all while shielding the complexities of the underlying technology from the consumer—will enable service providers to create a compelling and positive end-user experience. By abstracting complexity and ensuring that consumers get the service they expect, providers can control costs, maximize profits, and ultimately deploy truly successful IPTV services.

Educational content provided by Sanjay Castelino, Motive, Inc.


November 2006, Volume 2 back to index
Without Management, Complex Technology Will Inhibit the Success of IPTV By Sanjay Castelino, Vice President of Industry Marketing, Motive, Inc. With predictions that global Internet protocol television (IPTV) subscriber numbers will top 53 million by 2009 (Infonetics Research), providers are rushing to deliver these digital services in order to capitalize on this potentially lucrative market. However, to create a truly successful and profitable service, providers must deliver a superior customer experience, rock-solid stability, and fast, effective service and support from the outset. A crucial part of this will be overcoming the technical hurdles. Despite the predictions and hype, the rollout of IPTV continues to be plagued by complicated technical issues. Building a next-generation network (NGN) capable of supporting IPTV involves sophisticated network infrastructure as well as multiple devices in the home. Compounding this are consumer expectations that IPTV should "just work" at least as well as, if not better than, traditional television services. Successful IPTV deployments will need to overcome these problems by shielding consumers from unfamiliar and complex technologies and providing services that are simple and easy to use, ultimately ensuring a positive end-user experience. Service providers are discovering that IPTV not only offers growth opportunities, but also carries a number of risks due to the complexity of the technology. Consumers simply will not stand for unreliable and problem-prone services, and if the IPTV service fails, the provider risks the consumer unsubscribing not just from this service, but also from the whole bundle. For this reason, providers are moving cautiously to avoid any issues that might contribute to the failure of an IPTV service, and delays in IPTV rollouts by major providers point to the fact that this is not yet a straightforward service. This is a sign of the inherent complexity of such a massive undertaking and underlines the fact that service providers must tread carefully to ensure they can offer a positive customer experience from day one, which is essential if they are to both win and hold on to customers. To deploy an IPTV service that is successful in the long term, providers must ensure that consumers have confidence in their service, and this involves hiding the technological complexity. All the devices needed for such deployments are subject to constant change, creating a dynamic, highly distributed new architecture that makes it challenging for providers to deliver and manage their IPTV services. Indeed, according to Motive's current estimates, providers can expect an average of two and a half support calls per subscriber within the first 30 days of a typical installation, many of which will result in a technician visiting the subscriber's home. After the first 30 days, providers can expect 5.6 calls per subscriber per year, each lasting an average of 20 minutes. As a result, providers can expect as much as 20 percent of their revenue from IPTV services to be consumed by support costs. However, the frequency with which problems occur not only negatively impacts profit margins, but also leads to dissatisfied customers. To solve technical problems, consumers will first call the help desk. In reality, four main problems—troubleshooting video, system configuration, troubleshooting connection, and information—account for 86 percent of all calls. With the same faults occurring repeatedly, providers need to put an effective system in place to deal with these common issues. This is especially important given that IPTV is being placed in to the hands of non-technical consumers who will call the provider at the first sign of any glitch. Currently service providers deal with problems in an inefficient, ineffective, and expensive way. First-call resolution rates are low and problems often recur, leading to greater customer dissatisfaction and greater impact on profit margins. The overall cost of managing digital services is very high, with nearly all technical support calls requiring live assistance from a customer service representative. And when problems recur, a truck roll is usually deployed—this "solution" is costly for the provider and inconvenient for the customer. Equally, providers lose revenue when the IPTV service is down, impacting further on profit margins. Every call to the help desk and truck roll lengthens time to profitability for the provider and increases the risk of customer churn. Reducing the cost of technical support issues is crucial to the success of an IPTV deployment. Given the huge capital costs of building networks capable of supporting IPTV, losing customers over technical problems is simply not an option for today's IPTV service provider if it wants to stay competitive. One solution is to build self-management into IPTV services, thereby reducing the cost of technical support and improving the time to profitability for providers. By using intelligent automation, service providers can empower users to help themselves by identifying the problem with a faulty service or fixing the problem without contacting the call center. By building customer service into the viewing experience, providers can ensure increased customer satisfaction and loyalty—and even bigger revenue streams. For more complex problems, remote management capabilities should be provided for call center representatives. This will give them real-time visibility and control over the IPTV system, including quick access to diagnostic information. Empowered with this information, call center representatives can quickly isolate trouble spots and reduce the chance for problem recurrences. By building such self-management into IPTV services from the outset, service providers can expect to dramatically reduce the operational costs required to roll out and support new services while providing a convenient and rewarding experience for their subscribers. With IPTV uptake expected to grow at a phenomenal rate, providers are rushing to make the most of this opportunity. But providers will need to act fast to become successful in this emerging market. IPTV management technology that automatically installs and services, diagnoses, and repairs problems—all while shielding the complexities of the underlying technology from the consumer—will enable service providers to create a compelling and positive end-user experience. By abstracting complexity and ensuring that consumers get the service they expect, providers can control costs, maximize profits, and ultimately deploy truly successful IPTV services. Educational content provided by Sanjay Castelino, Motive, Inc.