Josh's Blog

Joost is promising to revolutionize IPTV. Maybe it will. What I can't understand is why IPTV has to be so different from regular television. Why don't content providers allow cable companies to simply rebroadcast their content on the internet?

For anyone who doesn't know how a cable system works, let me explain it. I am going to focus on the majority of channels and avoid the "local" channels. Say Comcast wants to add the SciFi channel to its channel offerings. Basically, the cable company pays a price per subscriber to the channel and in turn raises the customer's monthly bill more than what the channel costs. Some channels cost the cable company more that others, and the bigger the cable company, usually the better pricing the channel gives them. It could range from a few cents to a several dollars.

So, here is my question. Why won't channels allow cable companies to follow a similar model with IP transport? Then I can pay the cable company a few dollars extra a month to have my service duplicated via IP. Right now we have every individual channel trying to go there own way and it is making a giant hodgepodge of different media in different locations.

Frankly, I know the answer to my own question. It comes down to money. Right now I think the channels believe they can make more money doing it themselves. The cable operators might be afraid of cutting into their huge revenue stream. Don't get me started on DRM. Frankly, I think everyone is losing out. What do you think?