Contentinople - Ryan Lawler - Move Networks Nabs First IPTV Customer

Written by Ryan Lawler

Thursday, September 10. 2009 at 01:00 AM EDT 3 comments

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Move Networks Inc. may finally see some traction as an IPTV technology provider, with the news that Cable and Wireless plc (NYSE: CWP) has chosen its adaptive bit-rate technology to power a global rollout of online video services.

CWI, Cable and Wireless's international telecom business, will use Move Networks technology to deliver online video services in 38 countries worldwide. The deal will enable CWI to offer multichannel video services to customers through their existing ADSL broadband connections without the need for building out local IPTV infrastructure.

The new IPTV service will be offered to more than 7 million customers to whom CWI already provides fixed-line, broadband, and mobile services, and will be available through existing broadband connections. The service will include linear programming, a network digital video recorder (DVR) function, as well as the ability to pause and rewind live and on-demand video streams.

Move Networks will handle the middleware, content management, conditional access, and backend systems for the CWI IPTV rollout. But most importantly, it will provide adaptive bit-rate technology that will enable CWI to provide a high-quality video experience regardless of the local network conditions.

Move's technology works by adapting to changing network conditions, seamlessly increasing or decreasing the bit rate of a video stream to ensure the highest quality experience to the end user. Because different markets that CWI serves will have different levels of broadband connectivity, using Move will allow the company to offer an optimized experience in all countries that it rolls the service out in.

The customer announcement comes nearly six months after Move closed on its acquisition of Inuk Networks Ltd., a virtual set-top box provider based in the U.K. That purchase signaled a shift in the company's strategy, from providing high-quality video distribution to media companies such as ABC Inc. and Fox Broadcasting Co. to selling technology to Internet service providers looking to offer their own online video services.

Tags: Acquistions, Business, HTTP, IPTV, Move Networks, Partnerships, Technology, TV, Video, Video-on-Demand (VOD)

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Move Networks & Inuk Already Announced This
SomeGuy122
Rank: Pasha
Thursday September 10, 2009 2:30:41 PM

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A quick google would have yielded the following from 2007: http://www.tvover.net/2007/07/09/Cable+Wireless+Inks+IPTV+Deal+With+Inuk.aspx:

Cable & Wireless will deliver national IPTV services via broadband, through a ground breaking wholesale deal with Inuk Networks. Worth around £70 million over five years, the contract sees Cable & Wireless providing Inuk with access to the UK’s most advanced nationwide multicast network enabling the delivery of television, telephony and broadband services.

How does this deal differ from the one they announced 2 years ago? What happened to the 70 million pounds over 5 years? From Paidcontent.org (http://paidcontent.org/article/419-uk-iptv-firm-inuk-gets-much-needed-buy-out-from-move-networks/) Inuk was in trouble when Move bought it. What happened?

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Re: Move Networks & Inuk Already Announced This
Ryan Lawler
Staff
Thursday September 10, 2009 3:30:23 PM

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SomeGuy122: I'm not sure what happened to the £70 million, but it seems like this is a different deal. For one thing, it's an international deal through CWI, and not a local U.K. deal. Furthermore, it's a direct-to-consumer IPTV play and not a wholesale offering to other U.K. DSL customers. My guess is that Inuk didn't have the scale to enable a nationwide offering, let alone an international deal without Move's help.

I have a question out to Move asking about this and will follow up with any details I get back. I also completed an interview earlier with them, and will post a followup with details on the Cable & Wireless deployment when I have them.

As for Inuk being in trouble when it was purchased... According to an SEC filing, it looks like Move raised about $7.8 million in connection with the Inuk acquisition, so it wasn't a huge deal when it was done. But given the revenue potential from Cable & Wireless and others, it's probably not a bad pickup.

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Re: Move Networks & Inuk Already Announced This
Ryan Lawler
Staff
Thursday September 10, 2009 4:15:37 PM

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Quick followup... Here's the explanation I received from Move:

"Both C&W UK and CWI Group part of the same plc. But very different businesses. One B2B, one B2C.
The deal between Inuk and Cable & Wireless was with the C&W UK telco, a B2B telco operating only in the UK. Inuk was effectively wholesaling DSL from C&W, to complete a triple play solution for Inuk's Freewire student platform. i.e. Inuk was the customer.

The deal between Move and CWI Group, i.e. C&W's B2C telco operating in 38 markets (not including the UK) largely as incumbent operator, is about Move providing IPTV services to CWI's customers."

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