IPTV to Open New World
By Kim Tong-hyung
Staff Reporter
Imagine a television that provides real-time news, tailored programs, movie downloads, online shopping, banking and text messaging for mobile phones. It is already a reality in places such as Hong Kong and France and it could be coming to a home near you this fall.
According to the country's broadcasting regulator Tuesday, Koreans will be able to watch television via the Internet from as early as September.
The Korea Communications Commission (KCC) will receive applications from companies seeking licenses to provide Internet protocol television (IPTV) services from Aug. 11-18 and the country's leading Internet operators; KT, Hanarotelecom and LG Dacom are likely to apply.
Government officials plan to fast track the process and expect the first IPTV provider to start commercial services in two months time.
IPTV is a technology that delivers digital television services over computer networks running at broadband speed. In addition to providing traditional broadcast television, IPTV can also offer subscribers advanced applications such as video-on-demand, online shopping, video games and other services with much more interactivity.
``Aside of the four companies ― broadband operators KT, Hanarotelecom, LG Dacom and Internet company Daum ― which have made clear their ambitions for IPTV services, we are also expecting participation from cable television operators,'' said Park No-ik, an official from the KCC conversion policy bureau.
Ending a lengthy debate that dragged on for three years, the commission's executive committee passed the Internet television services Bill Friday, which, pending approval by related government agencies, will allow the government to license content providers.
Five online shopping operators and cable news channels YTN and MBN have applied as content providers for Internet television, the commission said.
KT, Hanarotelecom and LG Dacom have been gathering customers for Internet television services since last year, but have been prevented from airing real-time broadcasts and have so far relied on video-on-demand services.
Daum, the country's second-largest Internet company, is planning a different kind of offering that focuses more on moving its computer services to the television, offering interactive services such as Web search, online shopping and instant messaging. The company also believes that the wealth of text, images and video content produced by its bloggers could be used to create revenue.
Hanarotelecom's Hana TV has around 850,000 customers, followed by KT's Mega TV with about 480,000 customers. LG Dacom's myLGTV has yet to attract 10,000 customers. The government expects the number of Internet television viewers to rise to more than 3 million by 2013, when the industry will be generating about 850 billion won ($812 million) in revenue.
However, the rosy predictions will rest on whether the IPTV operators can connect with national television channels KBS, MBC and SBS, who are considering the era of broadband television as both an opportunity and a threat.
Should IPTV operators fail to sign contracts with the terrestrial channels to broadcast their content real-time, Internet television could fall into the same fate as satellite-based mobile television, called satellite-based DMB here, which has yet to take off commercially four years after its debut.