RE: UKNM: DTV Industry: Is There One?

[Sajid Mohammed]

---Felix Velarde <

felixhead-newmedia [dot] com

> wrote:

>

> Because all we can see ahead is a TV-spot-production-house-type scrum 

> for the production work available, we've taken a different approach - 

> but it's not trendy, and we don't want to lose our competitive 

> advantage, so we'll not broadcast our strategy.


Foiled again!


The question that springs to mind is - what competitive advantage? If

everyone is keeping their cards close to their chests, then how do you

know for sure that every other player in the market place is not about

to implement your idea?


As for not being trendy, I hardly think that makes a difference - it's

been a long time since I saw someone in a luminescent Daniel Poole

jacket clutching a copy of Neuromancer in one hand and a copy of Wired

UK (ouch!) in the other muttering about 'virtual communities'. (Sorry,

it's Friday afternoon and I couldn't resist.)


The point is this - the DTV proposition is not one that is being

universally recognised as a viable market opportunity or indeed *the*

market opportunity, if you believe NCI when they say that thin client

internet appliances will outnumber PCs as internet access devices by a

ratio of 10:1 by 2010. Interactive/Enhanced TV could crack open the

market of people who want to get online and can't for a variety of

reasons.


BUT the cadre of players out there at the moment need to be more

visible and lend credibility to DTV, which potentially could make the

consumer market explode. Why should the average punter fork out �1500+

on a QuakeStation that crashes twice a day when they could get a

set-top from someone like C&W that they pay a monthly sub for? And

before we get onto the 'it's not extensible, doesn't do Java, doesn't

do Real etc', most people wouldn't know what a Flash site was if it

eloped with their first-born and could care less.


If the industry doesn't become more visible, then we're all going to

be wasting our time all over again advocating this new channel.


As long as the offering is tailored to the consumer and (not the other

way round, which is the way it has been) then they will snap it up

regardless of the bells and whistles that they will be missing out on.

As long as it boots immediately, has a speedy upstream, doesn't need

configuring and doesn't crash then I'll see you at that nice little

beach bar in Eleutheria - mine's a rum punch.


BTW, couldn't find anything on Brann Interactive's site about DTV -

though I did find a spinning blue foetus. If anyone can make the

connection between said foetus and DTV, then I will treat you to lunch


at one of Soho's less fine eateries. Mail me off-list - judge's

decision is final.


Sajid Mohammed - "Forgive me, it's Friday"

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