Re: UKNM: DTV Industry: Is There One?

[Ben Thompson]

Hardly, I would have thought that the NTL sale would be easier. Here

for �15 a month have a phone line and that digital TV everyone is

talking about (oh by the way you get most of the Sky channels and all

the ondigital channels included). The NTL sale will probably not even

mention interactivity or the Internet. Remember, none of the cable

companies understand the internet or care about it. Otherwise most of

us would already have cable modems.


Or you can go and spend �200 on a box that just provides internet

access. While the system might look good and I can see a scenario where

it would be popular I have serious doubts about it in the UK.


Ben


> Personally I think that WebTV has actually got the better chance of succeeding

> as a mass market consumer device, because it markets itself as a device that

> makes TV better - and that's a concept that is easier to sell to current TV

> viewers. The fact that you get 'real' internet access as well is just a bonus.

> NTL, on the other hand, has to sell the Internet as a valuable service - which

> is much more difficult.

> 

> Obviously, I'm only going on the demo's I saw at the Wired Sussex DTV event -

> but unless NTL has a lot more up its sleeves, I think it'll have a tough time.

> 

> ---------------------------------------

> Ian Betteridge  News Editor, MacUser UK

> W: 0171 917 3872        M: 07957 235463

>              H: 01273 695488


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