Cable TV subscriptions Declines as the Connected Home boost IPTV Streaming

I came across some interesting stats today while perusing the shopping mall that is the Internet.

Turns out that SVOD (Subscription Video on Demand) Services aka streaming is seeing a 6% resurgence at the expense of Cable TV Services e.g. HBO, Showtime, etc, which appears to be suffering a decline of 6% when studied over a two (2) year period as stated in the article “TV subscriptions drop as video streaming services rise”, published January 20, 2014 6:28 PM PST by Dara Kerr, CNET News.

This based on the stats Data from global information company The NPD Group reported in “Cord Shaving? SVOD Subscribers Increase, as Premium TV Subscribers Decline, According to The NPD Group”, published January 20 2013, The NPD Group.

Clearly now, if this trend continues at this rate, by 2015, the Cable Industry in the US of A would have lost a good 12% to Streaming Services. Already according to the NPD Group Statistics, Streaming, which is distinct from Downloading of Video Content, accounts for 67% of all Digital Subscription services (think Free Video Downloads via Amazon Prime) as reported in “Cord Shaving? SVOD Subscribers Increase, as Premium TV Subscribers Decline”, According to The NPD Group, published January 20, 2014, PRWeb.

A grim statistic in the US of A when one considers the rapid growth of Tablets and smartphones that facilitate media consumption anywhere and anytime, particularly 7 inch Tablets that hit that magical size sweet spot in my Geezam blog article entitled “The Two Towers of Tablets, 7” Amazon Kindle Fire and 7.9” Apple iPad are the Global Tablet size of Choice”.

According to the NPD Groups Report in August of 2013:

1.      32% of American households were subscribed to premium-TV channels

2.      27% American households were subscribed to SVOD services

Netflix remains the clear leader in SVOD thanks mainly to their tactic of matching their streaming offerings with the torrenting habits of Americans as noted in my Geezam blog article entitled “Netflix uses Torrenting Trends to pick popular Content”. Hulu Plus and Amazon Prime are Growing Strong as well and have potential to make deeper inroads into Cable TV 's customer base, especially Amazon, whose Online Shopping business is boosted by its Amazon Kindle Fire product as noted in my Geezam blog article entitled “Amazon is Legally Blonde as the Kindle Fire HD Upgrade is CEO Bezos’s Confessions of an Online Shopaholic”.

Caribbean on the Cusp of a Streaming Revolution – Broadband Internet as a Right is Necessary

Clearly my making mention of torrenting is a pointed reference to the Caribbean and Latin America, where these fancy Tablets are still delicate devices for the noveau reich to have. The Caribbean and Latin America remain a source for Torrenting Traffic on older yet still useful PC’s and long-worn Laptops chucked away as”outdated” by the consumerist West.

Hence a reason why the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) and MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) are pressuring Google to make it difficult for persons searching for Torrenting websites to locate them via Google as noted in my Geezam blog article entitled “Google downgrades searches for Pirate Sites in a bid for IPTV Streaming Dominance”.

Ditto the same thing for the Streaming Music Industry, which is plagued by illegal downloading despite the prevalence of Legal Options such as Amazon Cloud Player as noted in my Geezam blog article entitled “The Music Industry and the Cloud – Streaming Radio Nirvana”.

Not fighting down Tablets, as I have lots of Tablet customers for whom I love fixing their Tablet, being as they’re so easy to fix. It’s just that Tablets have some distance to go in terms of their development before they replace the creative power of PC or Laptops. They’re currently only good at VOD and Gaming and very little else based on their Processing Power and Internal Memory Size and lack of a physical Keyboard, something noted by pragmatic Caribbean people when choosing to buy a Computer for their Children.

But as that is the main medium for learning for those for who a full-blown and very expensive Computer remains out of reach, VOD will therefore see a boost in usage in the Classroom.

Hence a reason why LIME still has plans to push LIME TV as a VOD Service as predicted in my Geezam blog article entitled “LIME Jamaica’s 2013AD Launch of IPTV “LIME TV” is a Streaming “TV Anywhere” Revolution”.

Already there are Caribbean Streaming Services such as eMedia Interactive Limited’s President and CEO Tyrone Wilson iVu TV as described in Kelroy's article entitled “Caribbean based Online streaming service iVu TV launches”. Netflix has also made a foray into our space, forcing our local Cable Provider FLOW, to up the ante in terms of their service delivery by offering HD (High Definition) Channel options as noted in my Geezam blog article entitled “FLOW goes 3D HDTV et al – Netflix to make FLOW Extinct”.

Netflix for the Caribbean isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be, with dated offerings that make you realize that it’s better to have an American Account for Netflix as noted in Ramano’s  article entitled “Is Netflix a Netjoke?”.  With DSO (Digital Switch Over) on the horizon for 2015 as noted in my Geezam blog article entitled “The Future of Free-to-Air Broadcasters in Jamaica as Digital Switch Over Approaches in 2015”, Broadband offering in Jamaica need to improve as well as go lower in Price to Make Streaming a Reality.

Broadband Internet a Right similar to the Right to Life and Freedom of Expression for Caribbean Nationals

The option is to make Access to Broadband Internet a Right similar to the Right to Life and Freedom of Expression and empower Caribbean Nationals with the idea that the Internet can be a source of Income and a new way or working, Tele-Commuting to be precise as chronicled in my Geezam blog article entitled “Jamaica’s 100MBps Internet Silver Lining – Tele-commuting Workplace is coming”.

This is currently the case in Finland and is now enshrined under the UN (United Nations) Human Rights Charter which is binding unto all Democratic States that have signed up the UNHRC as noted in my Geezam blog article entitled “Jamaica’s Low Net Penetration – Broadband Internet A Universal Right”. The Ball is now in the Court of the Jamaican Government and all Caribbean Governments as what their actions will be to force Broadcasters to go DSO and enshrine the Right to Access to Broadband Internet as a National Priority for all Caribbean Nationals from all walks of life.

At that point, our streaming revolution would have begun in the Caribbean. Until then, it’s but a pipe dream!