Telecom and cable companies will go into 2008 with an eye on real convergence products and personalizing content access for customers, according to Kent Steffan, VP of the content direct initiative for CSG Systems.
The company provides customer service and back-office solutions for about half of North American cable operators, Steffan said. CSG’s customers include Time Warner, Comcast, Cox Communications, satellite companies such as EchoStar Communications and DirecTV, and telcos such as Verizon Communications Inc.
In 2007, Steffan said, the company “saw a huge push around kiosks” that allowed customers to do simple self-service tasks such as make payments or place orders for products. The kiosks also doubled as advertising and brand extensions for the telecom companies. Some companies even looked to co-brand kiosks.
This year, Steffan said he expects telecom companies to take a variety of approaches in enabling customers to access content.
More screens, more personal
Companies are also starting to realize that with three screens available for content delivery, the content itself cannot simply be repurposed but should be tailored to the experience on the specific device.
“I think they’re all going down the path of the right type of content on the right device,” Steffan said.
Three-screen strategies
Telecom companies with a strong wireless element are focusing on a three-screen strategy as they offer their IPTV services, broadband Internet access and wireless. Steffan also said that more effort is going into establishing who a person is and the content they have access to, across multiple platforms.
The PC, TV and mobile phone “are definitely starting to get linked with who the person is and what content they have access to, and trying to move subscriptions across those devices for specific types of content.”
Growth in data expected
Asked about what impact Sprint Nextel Corp.’s joint venture with cable has had on the industry, as well as its Pivot product – which has been promoted as a step toward more converged services – Steffan said that on a macro level, cable companies have been competing with traditional telecom companies for customers and needed to at least make sure that they offered wireless as part of their bundle, to stay competitive. However, the high levels of penetration in the wireless market have meant that wireless voice “isn’t going to be a huge growth engine,” he added – and wireless data access is expected to be the next big thing.
Overall, Steffan said, “We’re dealing now with a big move from what used to be ‘mass’ entertainment or information to very personalized. And when you get very personalized, there are a lot of really incredible things you can do with the business model, the effects of it and really with the whole consumer adoption of it.”
