Dear iTV Doctor:
I've heard the reports and read the stories about Verizon FiOS TV putting live TV on the iPad. I understand that iPads and tablets are the hottest thing going, and it's very cool that Verizon FiOS is working with a device that's not even on their network. But there's got to be more to it than just TV, right?
iPaddling uPstream
Dear iPaddling:
I think there is a lot more to it. And it's big and complex and goes to the heart of the Verizon FiOS TV strategy. So to answer your question, I went right to the heart of the Verizon FiOS TV group: Rachelle Zoffer, director of content strategy and acquisition, and Maitreyi Krishnaswamy, director of interactive video services product management. This turned out to be a long interview, so I'll get to the timely points right here, and I'll dig down into more detail in an upcoming issue of itaas's iWay Newsletter.
iTV Doctor: We've heard a lot of buzz recently about Verizon FiOS TV and iPads and other tablets. Maitreyi and Rachelle please give us a top-line: what's going on?
FiOS TV: That's a very good question. We are focused on leveraging tablets and smart phones as companion devices in the subscriber's FiOS in-home WiFi network. The very first product we launched as part of that strategy was the FiOS Mobile Remote earlier this year. That allowed subscribers to essentially convert their smart phones into FiOS TV remote controls so they could interact with the television as well as share media with the television in a much more meaningful way. Here's a video that explains FiOS Mobile Remote: http://verizon.mediaseed.tv/Story.aspx?story=37309
iTV Doctor: Are we talking only about smart phones that are connected to Verizon wireless?
FiOS TV: Our tablet/companion device strategy is not focused only on Verizon wireless. We want to leverage whatever connected device the FiOS TV subscriber has in the home within their FiOS WiFi network. It can work with other in-home WiFi networks, but they'll get the most seamless experience if they have a full FiOS set-up.
We will continue to expand FiOS companion services to new devices as they are available. This is our FIOS TV product strategy as we want to enhance the experience for all FiOS TV subscribers.
iTV Doctor: You do have the Droid platform--Google software sitting on Motorola and HTC devices. Are you targeting anything specific to Droid?
FiOS TV: We already have services like FiOS Mobile Remote and DVR on the Droid platform that are extremely popular. As a companion strategy we are not targeting any exclusive features for the Droid platform at this time.
We have to allow the consumer to use the device and platform that's most convenient--we need to talk to the consumers where they are, not where we want them to be. For example, our Media Manager application lets users upload video up to 70GB in the cloud, and then stream that content to their TV, PC or mobile devices.
iTV Doctor: Can you give me a consumer example? Somebody using television and their smart phone. What exactly happens here?
FiOS TV: Let's say you're watching a football game, interacting with your FiOS TV widget, and you have on your coffee table your companion device--a tablet or a smart phone. FiOS Mobile Remote can share information about the game to the companion device, and maybe then upsell additional NFL mobile content to the customer. It's a win-win for the customer and for the content partner.
iTV Doctor: Let me make sure I've got this: your partner might be upselling to my mobile device, even if it's on somebody else's network (assuming the content partner has a deal with that wireless distributor), I'm watching FiOS TV and you can enable the content partner to pitch me for content delivered by another wireless network?
FiOS TV: That's absolutely right. But it's not just about upselling content. It's also enhancing the experience--content related to the player on the screen, the stats, the replays, player bios, perhaps some behind-the-scenes content.
iTV Doctor: So the FiOS Companion Strategy might allow the NFL to provide pre-selected scenes from this season's "Hard Knocks" series on HBO (featuring the NY Jets) during a Jet's game? For an NFL fan, THAT is seriously cool! Not to say that HBO would do it, but WHAT A CONCEPT! You're watching a Jets game, and Mark Sanchez fumbles the ball, picks it up and runs for a first down. Then an NFL engineer pushes a "Hard Knocks" scene where Rex Ryan cusses out (which he has a tendency to do) Mark Sanchez for too many fumbles, and Sanchez says, "It will never happen again, coach." And you don't have to interfere with the live game to do it--send it to the companion device!
FiOS TV: Settle down, doc!
iTV Doctor: Sorry. OK, you've been getting a lot of emails about your newly announced tablet strategy? What do you want people to know?
FiOS TV: We've always been internally focused on developing for set-top boxes and for companion devices, and we have a lot of cross-pollination between the product teams. We want to challenge the boundaries of these platforms and make them work better--more contextually--for the consumers. The big opportunity we have is for our content partners and advertisers to think of the entire environment as an immersive experience. It's the gestalt of interactivity, where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. And this is important to our content partners: because of the way we have architected the home network, as well as the device communication, we are very capable of ensuring that only authenticated FiOS subscribers get access to the correct content at the right time based on the negotiated content rights.
iTV Doctor: How can The iTV Doctor's readers get answers to any questions they might have?
FiOS TV: If they're members of our SDK program, there is a community for that at http://code.verizon.com Or they can go to the FiOS TV Blog: http://www.verizon.com/athomeblog
iTV Doctor: I have to ask this (because my readers want to know). Rumor has it that Verizon wireless will start selling iPhones (and iPads) in the very near future. Can you confirm that rumor?
FiOS TV: No comments please.
iTV Doctor: OK, we'll continue the conversation in the itaas iWay Newsletter, including an update on Verizon FiOS TV widgets.
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The iTV Doctor is *Rick Howe*, who provides interactive television consulting services to programmers and advertisers. He is the recipient of a CTAM Tami Award for retention marketing and this year was nominated to Cable Pioneers. He is also the co-author of a patent for the use of multiscreen mosaics in EPG's. Endorsed by top cable and satellite distributors, "Dr" Howe still makes house calls, and the first visit is always free. His services include product development, distribution strategy and the development of low-cost interactive applications for rapid deployment across all platforms. Have a question for the iTV Doctor? Email him at itvdoctor@itvt.com
