Internet TV has been around for a while now. You can watch streaming TV programs online at a number of service providers, provided you have a subscription and fast broadband Internet access. The merging of conventional TV with Web TV is, however, something to get excited about and Google has taken the lead once again.

With Google TV a reality, the Internet and television has finally merged, but with HDTV powered by Google TV viewers now have a wider choice of entertainment than could be provided by normal broadcasters. Users can search the Internet, subscribe to several television streaming channels online, watch live television, organise their favourites and even chat online, all on the same HDTV screen. It is a more personalised television experience where the users can download applications such as Facebook, Twitter, Napster, and Pandora allowing for the same functionality of Internet usage all from the comfort of their TV chairs in front of the big screen. With Google TV the users also have access to Android Market with thousands of applications.

You can even add your cellphone to the picture by using your iPhone or Android phone as a remote control or sharing of content between your phone and the Internet TV. Sony and Google have created a wonderful brave new world of Internet TV which revolutionizes the viewer experience. An integrated search function is provides with Sony Internet TV allowing you to search for programs or use the Internet.

If you already have an HDTV you can combine it with your Google TV and HDTV experience through usage of the Sony Internet TV, Blue-Ray experience. What is needed is an HDMI input, television, satellite box with the required HDMI output and you are set for integrated Internet TV watching and usage. To watch Google TV, sign on with your Google account which is free. It is not a pay service, but you may have to pay for the TV channels at the various service providers. You can watch on demand TV or subscription based. This can be done on your normal pc or the HDTV. You can thus enjoy Internet TV from a variety of platforms, whether wireless with your mobile phone, your pc or your TV, entertainment and searching have come together. The merge between Web and TV programming has made it possible to create a large search facility to ensure more entertainment control on the part of the user.

Interactivity is at the basis of this gigantic leap from the web to the television. Users trust Google and brands such as Sony to ensure a better TV rating system, channel searching option, and more relevant ads to the user. The bridge between television and web video has been crossed and some adaption on the part of service providers, broadcasters, and law makers may be needed.

How Will The Merging of Web TV and Conventional TV Influence TV Licenses?

TV licensing is a somewhat controversial subject. In many countries there is no such licensing. If we bring it closer to home, the topic gets more heated. With only a small percentage of South Africans watching the SABC programs with the majority of viewers subscribing to satellite based television services where they receive bundle packages of programs, a large number of viewers have indicated strong feelings about still having to pay TV licenses. The South African Broadcasting Corporation, however, has announced that TV licenses are not dependent on the programs a viewer watches, but the number of televisions in the household.

The argument has been mentioned that if you thus watch web based television from international service providers, and do so using your computer and its monitor then theoretically you don’t need a television license. This is true only if there is no TV card in your computer. With the merging of Internet TV with conventional television, the viewer can watch streaming TV from their computer or television screen and a TV card will be involved in most instances. As such TV licensing is still applicable. The Broadcasting Act, No. 4 of 1999 and its amendments, regulate the issuing of television licenses in South Africa. Accordingly, anyone in possession of a TV must pay a license fee. This also includes viewers that make use of TV card technology to watch programs over their computers. Mobile phone subscribers are not excluded from this act, and may find that when they subscribe to specific programs, that they will also have to pay TV licenses.

Impact of Internet TV on bandwidth usage

Although perhaps still a far-off dream in South Africa where only a small percentage of the population has uncapped broadband Internet access, in Europe, Japan, and the USA, uncapped fast access to the Internet is a given for most people. Broadband services providers most certainly did not have in mind that not to long from now, South Africans may also want to have Google TV and other Internet based television services which merge with more conventional broadcasting. As such the so-called uncapped broadband access is meant for responsible usage. Streaming takes up a lot of bandwidth and if users suddenly all sit in front of their televisions watching live stream TV programs through Google TV, they will pretty soon exceed any bandwidth usage expectations of service providers.

Many international companies and mobile service providers, including ATT, have already reacted to the upcoming Internet TV threat by implementing broadband caps and raising additional fees for data usage exceeding normal usage in an effort to curb possible over usage. Wireless service providers are expected to make some radical changes in their phone and subscription plans to limit intensive data usage. The support of wireless operators will be extremely important for any service provider hoping to substitute TV for Internet TV services.

Telecommunication and cable providers have already taken steps to protect their market, services, and of course, profits in sight of the upcoming Internet TV threat. The growth in the numbers of broadband subscribers around the world indicates that the market is ripe for the roll-out of true Internet TV. The service providers of streaming broadband TV will have to dock up for additional network costs while the conventional broadcasters and telecoms providers are rather reluctant to provide intensive data access through their networks uncapped without also benefitting from income derived through streaming.

At this stage, subscribers will still be within the broadband cap limits if they watch streamed content on their mobile devices for two or three hours or television for 24 hours since the streaming is at 200kbps, but with full scale Internet TV, the streaming can be done of HDTV level which could mean that a viewer could in only a matter of five to eight hours reach a point where the service provider will no longer be happy with the data usage. HDTV viewers are used to superior quality viewing in terms of the technical and entertainment aspects. Substituting their normal watching for Internet TV will only be done if the quality is not affected and with that comes more bandwidth usage because of high quality streaming.

Other Areas of Concern – Intellectual Property Rights

Intellectual property rights protection and management are already creating tremendous problems on the Internet. Copyright infringement, piracy, trademark infringement and patent stealing are the new form of the old school pirate ships creating havoc. Laws governing intellectual property will have to be amended in the long term to ensure adequate protection, but in terms of online video content being shared with others through downloading and then filing sharing, one must admit that Google TV or Sony Internet TV doesn’t change it. People have downloaded and shared web video content for a long time now and it will still occur, but rather than throwing out the whole concept of Internet TV merging with conventional TV because of fears, it is time to embrace the brave new world of merged Web and TV.