Operators and media companies need to work together to bring networked media to the consumer in the most efficient way.

Convenience, reliability and control are the key user requirements for the best media experience. Service delivery speed and ease of use are also vital to the growth of the networked media market.

As a distribution channel for networked media, the telecom industry can offer several unique benefits to content providers. Ericsson has the expertise and solutions to help operators and digital-content producers bridge the technological gap and achieve a successful evolution to networked media.

Ericsson understands that solid working relationships bring winning results. Operators and the media industry need to work together to realize the opportunities and achieve the full business benefits of this developing market.

The media and entertainment industry is a hybrid of content producers, brand owners, advertising agencies and rights owners, while the telecom industry globally involves a huge number of operators. To bring networked media to the consumer in the most efficient way, these two industries - with their individual strengths - require effective working synergies.

Over the past decade, the media industry has experienced dramatic changes in the way content is distributed, with digital formats replacing CDs and DVDs. This trend will continue and the use of physical distribution will diminish over time. Almost all media content will be available in a digital format and delivered over networks (networked media).

Meanwhile, operators are experiencing declines in voice and standard access revenues and have a void to fill. Consumer demand for richer and more imaginative communications has grown and operators need to meet user expectations.  

Convenience, reliability and control are key for consuming the new media offerings. Services must be transparent, desirable, dependable and easy to use. The experience is enriched with personalized and interactive content that will grow in significance and business value along with cross-media services and advertising.

At the same time, networked media will play a larger role, in both absolute and relative terms, in media companies' marketing and sales efforts. Producers of digital media content need, however, to find publishing solutions and distribution channels to get their offerings into the hands of consumers.

As a distribution channel for media, the telecom industry can offer several unique benefits. Operators have access to a huge number of potential users while digital-content producers can take advantage of low distribution costs and the ability to reach users anytime, anywhere - a key factor in the development of networked media.

Moreover, telecoms as a media distribution channel offers the advantages of interactivity, quality of service and built-in payment capabilities - delivering richer communication with reliability, security and convenience guaranteed.

Service delivery speed and ease of use are also vital to the growth of the networked media market. Ericsson understands this very well.  Our end-to-end offerings cover the provision of networks, service creation, integration and content management. Such solutions enable producers to get their content into the hands of users and allow operators to launch quality services efficiently.

At the same time, we can help operators increase the profitability of their core and service networks, complementing the new content by adding value to their established internet service. This includes improved quality of service, anti-spam and anti-virus protection, charging, positioning, provisioning, device management, digital rights management (DRM) and identity management.

Ericsson sees networked media as a fundamental part of the future marketplace. We can help operators and digital-content producers to bridge the technological gap to achieve a successful evolution to networked media.