All aboard Telco TV

To very little surprise, Bell Canada was awarded two licenses yesterday by the CRTC to offer digital television service in 11 communities in Ontario and Quebec. Bell will provide the service over its high-speed Internet network but did not tip its hand when the product will be rolled out. Bell's sister company, ExpressVu, is already offering TV-over-copper service into more than 200 apartment buildings and condominiums using VDSL technology so you would think Bell will use the same technology to go after residential customers. An issue Bell may still have to work through is not so much the delivery of TV signals but the value-added features that will convince consumers to give up their cable connections. Bell has a trial going on with Microsoft Corp., which signed a US$400-million software deal with SBC Communications Inc. earlier this week to do IP-TV next year. Differentiation – whether it's carriers getting into TV, or cable companies moving into telephony – will have to be done on something more than price. This will be a huge challenge for players trying to cross into new markets that should not be under-estimated.