Justifying bias

I've been accused of being biased in the past, and in all honestly I can't deny it. It's simply more fun to write about the concepts and technologies behind IP video than it is to drone on about mere data. Plus, when you tell your acquaintances what you do for a living, there's the off chance they'll believe you're in some way connected to Hollywood.

The most recent accusation of my bias came out when a good source of information (a banker at heart) questioned whether video was the key element in making the triple/quad of services a profitable venture going forward. Naturally, I responded that only a fool would believe otherwise. Sure, the most recent second-quarter earnings show that broadband data is making up for most of the shortfall in traditional voice revenue. But video is so sexy, how can it not be the key?

Looking at those smaller carriers that deployed a triple play of services, video penetration rates tend to be higher than high-speed data. Not a shock.

The issue, though, wasn't whether new video services could attract eyeballs. That's almost a given. But whether it could be done profitably? Ultimately, that question falls to vendors, which must cut costs on equipment without sacrificing their own financial necks.

While those same vendors have had almost a decade to tinker with the economics of high-speed data, the timeline for video is considerably shorter.

E-mail me at vvittore@primediabusiness.com.