An Intelsat survey of media company executives has found that 42% have made the decision to launch a 4K UHDTV service and have a specific timeframe for its rollout, with 23% planning to launch in less than four years.
The survey finds that 35% of non-technical executives expect Direct-to-Home (DTH) will be the first segment to gain momentum as compared to 60% of technical executives who believe Video on Demand is where 4K UHDTV will first take hold.
The main driver cited by media companies was the ability to provide the competitive differentiation necessary to attract new subscribers to their linear broadcast and cable television channels.
Intelsat surveyed technical and non-technical (primarily marketing) media executives from its global customer base, which is comprised of many of the world’s largest media companies that conduct business on a regional and global basis. The nearly 80 respondents represent a statistically significant sample of the pool of potential respondents.
“While it is becoming more evident that the transition to 4K UHDTV is highly likely, the road to adoption will take many paths, given the business model evolution resulting from the multi-screen viewing environment,” stated Peter Ostapiuk, Vice President, Media Product Management, Intelsat. “As with high definition television, socio-economics, demographics and technology infrastructure will determine the adoption timeline. This time, however, media companies are more focused on building the right business model that will enable them to deliver high quality and reliable content delivery across multiple platforms and, at the same time, achieve a strong return on their investment.”
