Swisscable: Providers like Zattoo benefit one-sidedly
Swisscable, the association of Swiss cable TV companies, believes that Internet TV providers benefit unilaterally from the network infrastructure of cable TV companies.
Swisscable, the association of Swiss cable TV companies, is of the opinion that Internet TV providers are benefiting one-sidedly from the network infrastructure of cable TV companies. This is increasingly leading to capacity bottlenecks on the networks, association president Hajo Leutenegger was quoted as saying in a press release on Tuesday. In principle, however, Swisscable does not view Zattoo & Co. as competition: "We see Internet television as a supplement to the cable TV offering," said Leutenegger. Due to the strain placed on the network infrastructure by Internet television, Swisscable will analyze in the coming months whether and what concrete measures are possible. "We are in no way trying to attack Zattoo or YouTube," Swisscable Managing Director Claudia Bolla-Vincenz emphasized to Werbewoche. "We simply want to find out how we can best handle data traffic." Bolla-Vincenz compares it to traffic on a highway: "There is also the slow lane and the fast lane, and not everyone can drive in the same lane". Solutions in cooperation with Internet TV providers are an option for Swisscable. "In France, for example, a portal has been created for Internet TV services that can be accessed by those customers who wish to do so," explained Bolla-Vincenz.
It is important to the association that customers receive the offer that they actually use and are not restricted in their network capacity by other services. It is therefore conceivable that there could be specific offers for those users who receive Internet television. According to Bolla-Vincenz, customers would not necessarily have to pay extra for this. It remains to be seen when a possible solution could be implemented.
"We are open to talks," said Dominik Schmid, responsible for German-speaking countries at Zattoo. The company is fundamentally aware of the problem that Internet TV requires large amounts of data. "From a consumer perspective, however, it certainly doesn't make sense to completely exclude individual services. If a cable network provider were to do this, we believe it would quickly become clear whether customers would appreciate it," said Schmid. The industry would have to find a solution that takes all services into account. Zattoo would be happy to discuss this with the cable network providers. No official talks have yet taken place.
It is important to the association that customers receive the offer that they actually use and are not restricted in their network capacity by other services. It is therefore conceivable that there could be specific offers for those users who receive Internet television. According to Bolla-Vincenz, customers would not necessarily have to pay extra for this. It remains to be seen when a possible solution could be implemented.
"We are open to talks," said Dominik Schmid, responsible for German-speaking countries at Zattoo. The company is fundamentally aware of the problem that Internet TV requires large amounts of data. "From a consumer perspective, however, it certainly doesn't make sense to completely exclude individual services. If a cable network provider were to do this, we believe it would quickly become clear whether customers would appreciate it," said Schmid. The industry would have to find a solution that takes all services into account. Zattoo would be happy to discuss this with the cable network providers. No official talks have yet taken place.
Carole Scheidegger
