22 February 2007
The arrival of internet protocol television (IPTV) heralds the end of the high street video store as on-demand TV begins its take-over this year, price comparison and switching website uSwitch.com claims.
IPTV marks the beginning of a new generation of television watching for the consumer and communications experts at uSwitch.com have predicted that soon the family living room question "What's on tonight?" will be replaced with "What shall we watch tonight?" as viewers are given the power to design their own programming schedules.
Downloading programmes is already popular according to a recent YouGov survey which found that the average broadband user is spending 30 minutes a week downloading films and a further 23 minutes a week watching TV online.
Steve Weller, Head of Communications Services at uSwitch.com, commented: "The benefits to consumers are clear. IPTV offers exceptional viewing choice and great value for money.
"With films starting at 99p there are clear cost savings to be made over the traditional high street video stores and we wouldn't be surprised if these cease to exist by the end of next year."
Mr Weller said broadband providers would be keen to milk the latest cash cow and predicted a huge competition clash between the big names, including Sky, Virgin Media, BT and Homechoice, soon to become Tiscali TV.
"Sky has traditionally dominated this arena, broadcasting a vast array of viewing content, but this is going to be aggressively challenged with the influx of new providers set to launch rival services that will provide compelling content on-demand this year," he said.
© 2008 Adfero Ltd
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