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Most Innovative New Service

2010 WINNER: PCCW for eye2

Recognises a service launched by an operator or service provider in 2009, and delivered fully or in part over an IP network, which made a significant contribution to service revenues and customer satisfaction. A service or product could be a complete IPTV launch or it could be a new service as part of an existing IP TV offer, such as the introduction of HDTV or DVR for example.

The application should demonstrate new thinking in the concept and provision of a service. The service should answer a real need for customers in the market concerned, which should be echoed in strong and measurable uptake following the launch.

The IPTV service must have been launched between January 2009 and 31st December 2009.

Criteria:

• Describe the impact the new consumer service has had in its target market(s), which would involve factors like consumer uptake, competitive response and the degree to which it can be illustrated that the new service met the aims of the service provider introducing it (for example, reducing churn, increasing revenues etc.) 400 words
• Describe the extent to which the consumer service is unique or innovative. 800 words max
• The degree to which the marketplace needed, or was demanding, such a service. Evidence of this need could include consumer uptake or the existence of competitive offerings, or market research. 600 words max

Best Interactive TV Service/Application

2010 WINNER: ADB for 'n'

Recognises interactive TV technologies and solutions across ALL network types, including terrestrial, satellite, cable, IPTV and mobile, and also covers technologies and services relating to Internet-based video delivered over any access network. It is not limited to services where the associated video is delivered as IP. However, please note that this category does not include Video on Demand; this award uses a more narrow definition of interactive TV - what people have come to understand by the abbreviation 'iTV'.
The service or application must have been launched between 1st January 2009 and 31st December 2009.

Criteria:

• Describe the service: what is it, who is it addressed to, how is it priced? 400 words max
• What makes it different from other services by competitive operators/companies? 600 words max
• What impact has it had on customers and on the market (provide any relevant customer satisfaction survey and market analysis) 800 words max

Best Subscriber Growth Achievement

2010 WINNER: China Telecom

Recognises an operator, service provider, ISP or content provider brand that has achieved significant growth in its subscribers for a managed IPTV service during 2008.

Criteria:

• Describe the operator/service provider and its market position 300 words max
• Demonstrate the growth in subscribers over 2009 500 words
• Supporting material may be provided via the Entry Form on the website. Independent verification will be sought by the organizers for subscriber number.

Best Hybrid Broadcast-IP Video Delivery Solution or Service

2010 WINNER: Echostar Europe for SlingLoaded HDS-600 R hybrid HD DVR

Recognises an operator, network provider, solution provider or ISP for a video delivery service or solution which supports the delivery of video over both the IP and non-IP video networks in parallel.

Examples would include content management systems that prepare content for simultaneous delivery over IP and non-IP networks, Service Delivery Platforms that provide a unified management for IP and non-IP delivered services, or customer premise equipment that caters for the convergence of IP and non-IP delivered services at the point of termination/display. This category also covers the transport and delivery portions of the video delivery chain:

Criteria:

• Describe the initiative taken to launch hybrid broadcast/IP video 500 words max
• How has the impact of the initiative been measured and what have the results been? 600 words max
• What lessons can be learnt from the initiative and how can it be applied to other networks/markets? 800 words max

Best Internet TV Technology/Solution

2010 WINNER: Cisco for Cisco Content Delivery System

Recognises technologies or solutions relating to video that is available via the public Internet. This generally means that it can be accessed via a standard web browser and can be found by anybody (although not necessarily viewed by anybody in the case of subscription services). However, video services that are delivered via the public Internet using a privately accessible web address are also included.

Criteria:

• Describe the Internet TV technology/solution, emphasising its unique features 500 words max
• How has the impact of the solution been measured and what have the results been? 600 words max
• What lessons can be learnt from the solution and how can it be applied in a variety networks/markets? 800 words max

Best Consumer Device/CPE

2010 WINNER: Amino for Freedom

Recognizes excellence in consumer equipment, including the initial IP video receive equipment, screens & video consumption equipment, devices that can be paired directly with the initial receive equipment, devices that reside on a home network connected to the initial receive equipment, and devices that can be paired directly with equipment on the home network - provided in all cases that the video consumed is IP video routed to the consumer or home via a network connection.

Any equipment in the home that does not receive its video content directly or indirectly via a IP network connection is excluded from this category. Thus devices playing hard media only, like a DVD player, do not qualify.

• Describe the impact the new consumer device / CPE has had in its target market(s), which would involve factors like consumer uptake, competitive response and the degree to which it can be illustrated that the new service met the aims of the service provider introducing it (for example, reducing churn, increasing revenues etc)400 words
• Describe the extent to which the consumer device / CPE is unique or innovative. 800 words max
• The degree to which the marketplace needed, or was demanding, such a device/CPE. Evidence of this need could include consumer uptake or the existence of competitive offerings, or market research. 500 words max

Best Quality Improvement Solution

2010 WINNER: Witbe

This category covers any technology or service that can be used to test, monitor, report upon, analyse or manage (proactively or reactively) video services delivered over IP-based networks. Technologies covered by this category could include monitoring solutions for picture quality or components of transport streams, and of course, Quality of Service. It also includes any technology or service that can be used to test, monitor, report upon, analyse, manage or in some way impact the overall customer experience in relation to IP video based services.

Areas covered by Quality Improvement could be technical (like provisioning and home network monitoring diagnostics and troubleshooting) or non-technical (like customer relationship management and billing). However, Quality Improvement must relate directly to improving the experience customers have with the services they request; it does not cover sales.

• Describe the quality issue that quality improvement solution addresses 500 words max
• Describe the solution itself, emphasizing its unique features 600 words
• How has the impact of the solution been measured and what have the results been? 600 words max

Best On-Demand Technology for IPTV

2010 WINNER: Ericsson for the WatchPoint Content Management System

Recognises the best on demand technology for delivering a TV service over a managed IP network.

The category includes on-demand solutions where the content is delivered either directly from the network on request (e.g. pull-VOD) or pushed to a client device in anticipation of a user request (e.g. push-VOD). Typical technology solutions that could be entered into this category include pull/push VOD content management and scheduling, content ingest, content preparation (including encoding and metadata management), storage, and distribution (including network asset management). Also includes network-based hardware and software solutions for the delivery of on-demand video services, and customer premise software solutions that support the management and display of on-demand television services, such as a client software or user-interface. However, client software and user interfaces will be judged specifically on the value they provide to on-demand.

Criteria:

• Describe the solution for the delivery of on demand IPTV, emphasising its unique features 500 words max
• How has the impact of the solution been measured and what have the results been? 600 words max
• What lessons can be learnt from the solution and how can it be applied in a variety of networks/markets? 800 words max

Best IPTV Service Delivery Platform

2010 WINNER: Netgem for NetgemTV

Recognises an IPTV Service Delivery Platform or Client Software that supports IP-based video delivered via a managed private network.

These solutions may also support video off the public Internet or video delivered over a managed private broadcast network that is non-IP based (such as satellite or DTT), provided that they fulfill the minimum requirement of supporting private network IP video delivery. Any service delivery platform, middleware or client software that only supports non-IP video does not qualify for this category

Criteria:

• Describe the IPTV Service Delivery Platform or Client software, emphasising its unique features 500 words max
• How has the impact of the solution been measured and what have the results been? 600 words max
• What lessons can be learnt from the solution and how can it be applied in a variety of networks/markets? 800 words max

Best Client Software/Intellectual Property Solution

2010 WINNER: First Media for m-QM

Recognises excellence in embedded client software or IP (intellectual property) across all network types, including terrestrial, satellite, cable, IPTV and mobile, and also covers technologies and services relating to Internet-based video over any access network.

For the purposes of this category, Client Software or IP refers to a software that resides in a video receive device and which is used to do any of the following: facilitate communications between the video receive device and the video delivery network; support video navigation, search or recommendation; manage the delivered video services locally, display video services on the receive device, instigate/run local or network applications in support of the television services.

The technology or solution supporting can reside in any device: this could be the video receive device or a device that is separate to the terminal where the video services are viewed.

Criteria:

• Describe the solution, emphasizing its unique features 500 words max
• How has the impact of the solution been measured and what have the results been? 600 words max
• What lessons can be learnt from the solution and how can it be applied in a variety networks/markets? 800 words max

Special Merit Award for Outstanding Individual Contribution to the Industry

2010 WINNER: Raoul Roverto, Executive Vice-President for New Growth Business and Transformation, Orange

Recongises an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the development of the IPTV industry.

Criteria:

• Describe the individual and the roles they have undertaken in the IP & TV markets 500 words
• What has been the immediate impact of their contribution to the industry? 600 words
• What will be the legacy of the contribution of this individual and the impact on the wider market? 600 words

Definitions