SBC gives peek at IPTV strategy

LAS VEGAS--SBC Communications will launch its U-verse branded video services in controlled trials by the end of the year with a strategy that banks on offering customers a combination of more channels and greater flexibility, said Dan York, senior vice president of programming.

During a keynote at the iHollywood Forum today, York said the company’s network architecture will include two super headends that serve the entire country. Those two, operating redundantly, would send video streams to local hub offices that serve a metropolitan service area. From there, video is sent through central offices and onto the company’s fiber/copper network that is being extended as part of Project Lightspeed.

“We’re making some real progress,” he said, noting that SBC has just completed controlled trials in several dozen employees’ homes. “The trial confirmed that we’re on schedule.”

Perhaps most revealing was York's comment that the company plans to provide enough bandwidth to every home for four video streams, with one of those being a high-definition channel.

“We could service up to four distinct viewing experiences per home,” he said.

Additionally, the company plans to launch with a package that includes a large video-on-demand library. Later iterations will include whole-house DVR service, photo sharing and other interactive applications.

“We believe it can improve how customers watch and personalize TV,” York said.

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