IPTV is often portrayed as the future of TV, fundamentally changing the way TV is consumed with huge ramifications for broadcasters and advertisers. But scratch beneath the surface, and it's difficult to find anything more substantial than a whole lot of unfulfilled promises.
"A lot of time has been spent talking about it, but then when you look at what's actually being done, there isn't a lot," notes Alice Manners, chief operating officer, GroupM Interaction Asia Pacific.
IPTV as a broadband delivery channel offers digital content available either through streaming or on-demand, along with interactive elements including multimedia file sharing, convergence with PC and mobile platforms and social networking.
Analysts point out that in recent years Hong Kong-based telecommunications company PCCW has emerged as the world's leading IPTV operator through its Now TV service, which currently boasts around half a million subscribers through a subscription model covering both fixed-line and internet platforms. Offering streamed content, a service for booking cinema tickets, games and limited video-on-demand, Now TV has also started airing interactive advertising.
Research firm IDC forecasts that regional subscriber numbers will explode from around 0.5 million currently to 20 million within three years, and other figures point to IPTV's revenue increasing to 13 per cent of all pay-TV revenues by 2015.
Industry pundits, particularly media agencies, are publically and privately salivating at the opportunities it presents, once a market's broadband network infrastructure is established and accessed by consumers.
So if IPTV as a delivery channel isn't going anywhere fast, what's holding it back?
According to Manners, there are several areas in which the channel is experiencing growing pains. High subscription fees and the quality of content (or lack thereof) are two key issues, along with convergence, or the ability to consume content through mobile and PC platforms.
"If you're able to consume media across multiple platforms like TV, your PC and your mobile, that's where the impact is quite large, both for consumers and for us in the media industry," explains Manners.
"If you can package it effectively and cost efficiently, that's where you will see the growth."
Another key issue facing IPTV is government regulation. In Korea and Japan, the issues of subscription costs and quality of content don't come into play — broadband is cheap, and there's no shortage of programming. But both markets are currently having to navigate a grey area, with IPTV falling into neither television or internet regulatory jurisdictions. Consequently, key stakeholders such as content providers are loathe to dip their toes too far into the digital ocean at this point.
Another concern for content providers is a lack of guaranteed security, particularly in the VOD space. IPTV can potentially make available entire archives of shows and other content that can be downloaded by consumers. But with digital piracy rampant in Asia, opening the doors could be a recipe for disaster. "It's not in their interest to release all of this content in one hit," says Damian Byrne, regional interactive and CRM director, Arc Worldwide.
"Someone cracks the code, and half of this stuff can be published online for free in five minutes, so that's partly the slight nervousness that is behind the lack of content being released. It's not that the content isn't there."
Media agencies too have a part to play, with Manners pointing out that many agencies are not promoting the channel as an alternative to current delivery methods, perhaps due to a dearth of metrics across the board.
But cable TV, long held as the incumbent 'new media' player in most, if not all, markets, is presenting itself as a player not easily dismissed, through a constant and perhaps hurried reinvention of its persona into a more digital-friendly identity.
Currently offering similar services to consumers along with comparable pricing structures, it has so far held back the tide, managing to retain a significant portion of its customer base. "Cable TV operators are going into this by trying to bundle their services," says Byrne. "You've got your voice, your data, your video and other environments that they're trying to sell, and so far, the cable TV operators are the ones going out and selling their digital content better."
It's a battle which could foreshadow similar confrontations in other markets. Singapore has emerged as the next front, given SingTel's mooted intention of launching an IPTV service, in contrast to incumbent operator StarHub's cable offering. And many others will follow.