Incentives and Disincentives for Switching to iDTV

Leuven.
Wendy van den Broeck is next at EuroITV 2009, and shifts our focus towards interactive digital TV (iDTV). Is such technology appropriated by consumers, and how? The transition of TV is a dynamic interplay between top-down policies and bottom-up consumer interests; this takes place against the backdrop of European policy towards analogue switch-off and other technological changes.

In Flanders, for example, the analogue terrestrial signal has been switched off (which was no major problem as 97% of viewers were using cable anyway). DTV cable companies now have some 1.2 million subscribers, with another 70,000 served by digital satellite providers. Each of these providers offers additional channels, and the cable companies also provide on-demand content and additional interactive services.

Commercial deployment in Flanders was preceded by various trial projects, which also explored TV-based email functionality, but with little success - typical features of the commercial offerings, therefore, mainly include on-demand content services and should be seen as an evolution rather than a revolution in television.

Whether this is enough to entice users to switch to iDTV (from analogue or digital cable) remains to be seen. Wendy's respondents perceived DTV as the future of television, and expected better quality; switching here was often evolutionary, prompted by the need to replace broken old TVs rather than a conscious choice to replace existing, still functional hardware. Especially in Belgium, switching was also seen as a kind of liberation from the limitations of existing offers (being able to access more Flemish programming while living in the French-speaking Wallonie, for example). There were also utilitarian arguments (no longer a need to go to the video store), and an impact of promotional campaigns. Promises of interactivity were no major motivator, on the other hand.

Uncertainty about cost and equipment delays switching, on the other hand, as does a wait-and-see attitude especially among older users. The natural transition also delays take-up - if existing gadgets don't break, take-up doesn't happen. Some users also didn't see any added value in switching, didn't have a lot of interest in TV at any rate, or feared TV addiction given the larger range of channels. Finally, there are also technical limitations, especially outside of urban areas.

Some users also proved to be overwhelmed with promotional information, frustrated with inflexible subscription models (requiring multiple subscriptions for multiple screens in the house, for example), or worried about costs. Finally, switching was also seen as a forced decision which was delayed to send a message to the cable TV providers.

There are a variety of complex factors for and against switching to iDTV, then - and some incentives for some users are disincentives for others. Take-up - in Flanders, anyway - turns out to be driven by industry push rather than market pull.

Technorati : EuroITV 2009, Flanders, digital, euroitv09, iDTV, interactive, motivations, switching, television
Del.icio.us : EuroITV 2009, Flanders, digital, euroitv09, iDTV, interactive, motivations, switching, television