Is satellite TV ready for the next wave of competition?
Lots of folks have dismissed telco plans for delivering video as being too little, too late. Nonetheless, the RBOC TV effort is under way, with the September launch of Verizon's FiOS TV, its all-fiber video and broadband network, in Keller, Texas.
More roll outs of FiOS TV are expected through the end of the year and in 2006. SBC also is readying its fiber video service along with BellSouth. Qwest has taken a quiet approach for its rollout, but has fiber services in at least two communities.
The companies also have bundling relationships with DBS companies: SBC with EchoStar, and Verizon, Qwest and BellSouth with DirecTV. And, as expected, the satellite TV companies are watching the RBOC video roll outs carefully to see if they're partnered up with a serious competitor.
Before folks diss the telco threat, it should be noted that the companies are spending big on fiber roll-outs. Verizon alone said it has invested $6.2 billion during the first nine months of 2005, a figure that includes startup and deployment capital for FiOS. The company said it expects wireline capital expenditures to total about $8.3 billion in 2005.
And the telco fiber potential was evident at last week's Telecom 05 conference in Las Vegas. Usually an event focused on phone service, Telecom 05 brought in intense interest from set-top box manufacturers, iTV middleware companies and - most importantly - programmers. And not just the small programmers ... FOX, Disney and Starz were present for the show.
And the threat isn't limited to just the big four phone companies. Medium-sized telcos and even small mom-and-pop phone companies are pushing video to customers. For example, Cavalier Telephone serves about 35,000 businesses and 200,000 residential customers in the mid Atlantic region. Next week, the company is expected to detail its video plans.
Hopefully, satellite TV doesn't overlook the potential competitive threat presented by telcos. The last thing the industry should do is belittle telco video plans the same way cable ignored the small dish business in its early days.
Lots of folks have dismissed telco plans for delivering video as being too little, too late. Nonetheless, the RBOC TV effort is under way, with the September launch of Verizon's FiOS TV, its all-fiber video and broadband network, in Keller, Texas.
More roll outs of FiOS TV are expected through the end of the year and in 2006. SBC also is readying its fiber video service along with BellSouth. Qwest has taken a quiet approach for its rollout, but has fiber services in at least two communities.
The companies also have bundling relationships with DBS companies: SBC with EchoStar, and Verizon, Qwest and BellSouth with DirecTV. And, as expected, the satellite TV companies are watching the RBOC video roll outs carefully to see if they're partnered up with a serious competitor.
Before folks diss the telco threat, it should be noted that the companies are spending big on fiber roll-outs. Verizon alone said it has invested $6.2 billion during the first nine months of 2005, a figure that includes startup and deployment capital for FiOS. The company said it expects wireline capital expenditures to total about $8.3 billion in 2005.
And the telco fiber potential was evident at last week's Telecom 05 conference in Las Vegas. Usually an event focused on phone service, Telecom 05 brought in intense interest from set-top box manufacturers, iTV middleware companies and - most importantly - programmers. And not just the small programmers ... FOX, Disney and Starz were present for the show.
And the threat isn't limited to just the big four phone companies. Medium-sized telcos and even small mom-and-pop phone companies are pushing video to customers. For example, Cavalier Telephone serves about 35,000 businesses and 200,000 residential customers in the mid Atlantic region. Next week, the company is expected to detail its video plans.
Hopefully, satellite TV doesn't overlook the potential competitive threat presented by telcos. The last thing the industry should do is belittle telco video plans the same way cable ignored the small dish business in its early days.
