IPTV a Mystery to the Masses, Accenture Survey Finds; Nearly Half of European and US Consumers Do Not Understand What IPTV Is, But Potential for Service Exists

The survey of 6,000 consumers across the United States, UnitedKingdom, France, Germany, Spain and Italy found that 46 percent do notunderstand the term IPTV - whereby broadcast-quality digitaltelevision is delivered over an Internet-enabled telephone network.

However, despite consumer uncertainty, the survey reveals that themarket for the services IPTV can provide is substantial in eachcountry. As part of the survey, respondents were asked what they woulddo to make television better; the top two answers were "having accessto a larger number of movies," selected by 30 percent of respondentsand "being able to create your own channel to watch programs wheneveryou want," selected by 26 percent.

When asked what future benefits would encourage consumers tosubscribe to an IPTV service, the greatest number of respondents (55percent) selected less advertising, followed by the ability to choosespecialist programs (47 percent).

"Despite a general lack of understanding about what IPTV means,there is strong consumer interest in the benefits that such a servicecould bring," said Ray Dogra, global IPTV lead for Accenture'sCommunications & High Tech practice. "Consumers clearly desire choice,control and the ability to personalize their viewing experience - allof which are the key benefits of an IPTV service."

While there is strong consumer interest in the concept of IPTV,the study indicates that IPTV service providers must focus carefullyon the marketing and associated end user education to ensurewidespread adoption of the service.

Cost is cited most often as the main barrier to adoption, with 54percent of respondents indicating they are not willing to pay an extrafee to get an entertainment service that allows them to search forcontent such as TV, radio shows and music whenever they want. Otherkey concerns slowing the rate of adoption include security issues (38percent), such as computer viruses and general quality of service (39percent) - including poor connections.

The findings showed a consistent trend across all six countriesrepresented in the survey, with younger adults indicating a greaterwillingness to adopt and pay for IPTV services than older ones. From agender perspective men also indicated a greater interest in IPTV thanwomen.

For more information on the study and on IPTV, please visit:www.accenture.com/iptv.

About the Study

To identify consumer understanding and preferences regarding IPTV,Accenture hired Opinion Research Corporation to conduct a survey of6,030 consumers in six countries during the latter part of 2005. Ofthe 6,030 respondents, 1,016 were from the United States; 1,012 werefrom the United Kingdom; 1,005 were from France; 1,001 were fromSpain; 1,000 were from Germany; and 996 were from Italy.

About Accenture

Accenture is a global management consulting, technology servicesand outsourcing company. Committed to delivering innovation, Accenturecollaborates with its clients to help them become high-performancebusinesses and governments. With deep industry and business processexpertise, broad global resources and a proven track record, Accenturecan mobilize the right people, skills, and technologies to helpclients improve their performance. With more than 126,000 people in 48countries, the company generated net revenues of US$15.55 billion forthe fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2005. Its home page iswww.accenture.com.