Future IPTV service subscribers may experience a sense of déjà vu when watching television commercials. Commercial advertisements will seem to speak directly to them and reflect the television habits of the viewer — much like one of the most popular Internet browsers, Google.
    “IPTV’s customized advertising experience will be very similar to Google’s Gmail service,” says Steve Rago, principal analyst for iSuppli Corp. “It will pick up on what the viewer tunes into, what shows they watch and what commercials they show interest in and be able to put together a profile for that viewer.”
    In May, Rago issued a report, “IPTV Acceleration Puts Satellite in a Corner,” that cited figures emphasizing the effectiveness of interactivity in advertisement and programming and related that to the success of modern Internet search engines like Google. The first software giant to acknowledge the success of Google’s format is Microsoft, who has just unveiled an IPTV platform that also will seem familiar.
    The Microsoft Mediaroom Advertising Platform is the software giant’s new IPTV solution that employs technologies from two companies recently acquired by Microsoft — Navic Networks and aQuantive. The platform includes tools for campaign and decision management powered by Microsoft Advertising. The new platform will support ad insertion into all TV formats, including linear TV, video-on-demand, third-party interactive TV applications and operator-owned assets.
    Microsoft’s Mediaroom Migration Program is designed to make it easier for operators currently using other companies’ IPTV platforms to migrate to Mediaroom. The program provides operators with a structured assessment process and analytical tools for migration, including business and technical workshops to review set-top box portability, network compatibility and audio-visual headend interoperability.
    “As the IPTV market matures, we are seeing interest from operators on first-generation platforms and homegrown solutions to migrate to Microsoft Mediaroom,” said Ben Huang, director of product management for Microsoft Mediaroom. “These service providers need to add high-definition and advanced digital video recording and video-on-demand features that are now fundamental to any competitive TV offering, and they want to remain competitive by being able to easily deploy advanced interactive applications. We are currently engaged in assessing migration opportunities with a number of customers and have been approached by many more. Platform migrations are complex, so this program has been developed to assist with business and technical planning, and reduce the cost and pain of migration.”
    While Microsoft’s solutions may be attractive to advertisers, the success of Microsoft’s push will be determined by the user’s response, said Rago. The programs “will create a large revenue stream for the service provider. They have the information, which is part of this paradigm shift, but for customers, it’s a feeling of being in control. Users want to be in control.”
    CFI Group analyst Phil Doriot said the U.S. market, which has a more traditional television audience than Europe, where IPTV has been more successful, may resist comprehensive advertisement programs. “Let’s face it, most television audiences in the United States just want to watch sports or their sitcom and not be bothered,” he said. “The only time people are focused on commercials is during the Super Bowl. I do not see people being enthusiastic about being studied by advertisers.”
    Rago agreed with Doriot, but said the audience targeted by Microsoft’s ad-targeting software is anything but traditional. “Microsoft is looking ahead,” said Rago. “They are targeting the video-game generation. These are kids that grew up with interactive video games and comprehensive Internet multimedia.”
    When asked about the potentially invasive characteristic of solutions like Microsoft Mediaroom, which has made improvements specifically designed to more accurately pick up on the viewer’s behavior, Rago said that the advertisement feature is not IPTV’s biggest selling point. “It is the customizable programming that people will warm up to,” said Rago. “The advertisement will seem like a natural part of it. Plus, if the viewer is only exposed to ads with products that person is interested in, it may feel less bothersome.”