IPTV Growth Puts Pressure on Pay-TV Providers, F&S Says

The growing use of IPTV devices will lead pay-TV middleware providers to create a unified, multiscreen experience for viewers, a Frost & Sullivan news release said Wednesday. In 2014, the IPTV market had $1.05 billion in revenue, said a Nov. 27 study on the global pay-TV middleware market from F&S, which develops growth strategies for businesses. IPTV revenue will increase to $2.03 billion by 2020, the study said. Rising subscriber churn and demand for over-the-top (OTT) subscriptions has put pressure on pay-TV operators, it said. Flexible consumption models using OTT and advanced pay-TV middleware are needed, it said. Pay-TV middleware providers will see more opportunities in emerging markets like Africa and India, which are moving toward pay-TV “IPfication,” it said. Markets in North America and Western Europe have hybrid cable and satellite deployments, it said.