Intec Telecom Systems has launched its new, pre-integrated IPTV solution, Intec IPTV. Intec IPTV addresses key service provider challenges surrounding customer interaction and the management and charging of IPTV services. These include rating, charging and balance management for different payment models; real-time service activation and provisioning; interactive customer self-care; and content partner management for revenue sharing and settlement. Intec IPTV, which is available immediately, is already undergoing deployment at a major carrier in Asia Pacific, a region that is leading the world in the rollout of IPTV services, according to industry analyst Informa.

Unlike the traditional unidirectional model of broadcast TV, IPTV creates new revenue opportunities for service providers such as customised advertising, on-demand programming, on-line purchasing, viewer polling, and content downloads. This interactive, real-time, personalised capability entails a huge impact on an IPTV carrier's existing OSS and BSS. The Intec IPTV solution builds on the company's global expertise in OSS/BSS to create a comprehensive, pre-integrated solution that supports the business model for this new television experience. Critically, Intec IPTV can be installed alongside, and integrate with, existing systems to minimize disruption and time-to-market.

"IPTV is the next stage in the evolution of communications - one provider for all services, from voice to the most sophisticated interactive entertainment offerings," said Rick Woods, Intec vice president of product management. "Intec solutions have always been at the heart of our customers' business and operational support systems. Intec IPTV helps create the business model our customers will need to allow them to compete in a new era of communications and to ensure they are realising maximum revenue from their network resources and the new opportunities that IPTV brings."

Critical to the adoption of IPTV by consumers is the ability of the service provider to differentiate its IPTV offering from traditional television services and providers. Viewer interaction and service customiaation are seen as the keys to driving widespread consumer adoption. Intec IPTV enables both viewer management and package management directly through the TV interface, allowing consumers to interactively change their profiles and services, as well as enabling such capabilities as real-time voting.

On-demand services, more advanced than those currently offered by traditional television service providers, are also critical elements of a successful IPTV offering. The proven, real-time capabilities of Intec IPTV support the management and delivery of all types of on-demand digital services as well as complementary offerings such as payment wallets, gift certificates, and TV voting. The popularity and attractiveness of these latter offerings will stimulate customer spend and demand for additional products and product bundles, thus driving the proliferation of the IPTV service model.

The personalisation and interactivity of the IPTV experience is expected also to trigger a new generation of targeted digital advertising. Through Intec IPTV, viewing statistics can be collected as part of the IPTV customer record, generating a wealth of market intelligence that can be offered to advertisers as an incentive and value-add service. Accurate user data helps increase advertising placement through tailored campaigns and subsequently the success of that advertising by allowing the advertiser to target viewer interests. Combined with new content partnership models supported by Intec IPTV, the solution allows service providers to take a complete, targeted offering to potential advertisers.

Intec IPTV includes functionality for:

• Charging for events in real time
• Activating services
• Managing content partners
• Active mediation and session management
• Interactive self-care