[darkpuppet]

NOS2Go4Me,Aug 13 2008, 01:22 PM Wrote:On a related note, seriously (and this coming from "an IT guy") - what's so great about IP TV? Everything I've ever used was sorely limited by either codecs or available bandwidth per connection (Joost, etc). If the telcos/commcos are going to throttle data flows, what's the guarantee it'll be any better than what we have now?

IP TV is indeed bandwidth limited. SDTV requires 1.5 - 3 Mbps of bandwidth per channel, and HDTV clocks in around 7-8Mbps so if you include PVR capabilities and multiple receivers, ADSL lines run out of bandwidth pretty quickly.

IP TV has some interesting features in being able to display caller ID on the TV when a call comes in (or automatically muting the TV if you so wish).. handy features, but maybe not deal makers for some users.

In smaller networks, IPTV is just as good, if not better than cable....

Where IP TV will come into it's own is when the digital networks start expanding. FIOS service offers plenty of bandwidth for IPTV, and new FCC standards are paving the way for standardized network interfaces (ie, all new set-top boxes must include ethernet support)...

In the grand scheme of things, there's a very good likelyhood that future broadband services are all going to be handled via RJ45 connections... it'll just take a long time to get there.