Speed and accessibility, rather than content, is driving consumer uptake of fast internet, Angus Kidman reports

Published in AustralianIT, May 20 2003

IN the broadband world, as on the wider internet, content was supposed to be king, but it seems to have settled for the role of crown prince. Many early activities to promote broadband in Australia centred on creating special content accessible only to broadband users.

Telstra, in particular, concentrated heavily on this field, with activities ranging from an online radio station starring Doug Mulray to specialised video channels.

While such activities continue to some extent, specialised broadband content, overall, is relatively small, especially among Australia's most popular sites.

Who's got what? news.com.au Content on offer: Audio news feed, some video news stories Format: Windows Media telstra.com.au Content on offer: Individual sport and entertainment sites Formats: Windows Media, QuickTime abc.net.au Content on offer: Portal with news, lifetstyle and children's content Format: RealPlayer i7.aol.com.au Content on offer: Portal with news and lifestyle content Format: Windows Media f2.com.au Content on offer: Video news stories Formats: Windows Media, RealPlayer ninemsn.com.au Content on offer: Portal with news and lifestyle content Format: Windows Media

Broadband connections now account for about 10 per cent of overall internet use in Australia, but it seems that generally higher speeds and always-on availability have proved more important than access to specialised broadband-only content.

That position is reflected in the Broadband Advisory Group's recommendations for developing broadband in Australia, which highlight the importance of digital rights protection and developing export markets.

The BAG doesn't recommend more content as a means of attracting more users.

Most of the major media providers in Australia offer some form of broadband-specific content, mostly in the form of on-demand video clips. Most large radio stations also offer streaming services, which can generally be received with acceptable quality even on dial-up connections.

Typical examples include interviews with soap stars -- a popular feature on Seven's Home and Away site, individual travel stories from travel show Getaway -- available on ninemsn, and the entire current edition of Media Watch -- available on the ABC's site.

A number of sites have long-term sponsorship arrangements associated with their broadband content. Unsurprisingly, these are often with broadband providers. Ninemsn's broadband portal is sponsored by iPrimus, while Fairfax's video content is sponsored by Optus Cable. Telstra's provision of numerous video-based sites (which don't count against the download limits applied to its broadband users) also represent a sponsorship arrangement of sorts.

Despite these commercial deals, the most extensive range of content comes from the sponsorship-free ABC site.

Many providers have scaled back their broadband content activities, influenced by the slow growth in broadband uptake and the lack of viable business models.

News Limited (publisher of The Australian) and Fairfax cut back on production of video news when it became apparent they wouldn't be allowed to broadcast such content using datacasting on digital television.

Microsoft's Windows Media and Real's RealPlayer remain popular choices for broadband video content. Windows Media's dominance among large local media providers goes against world trends. According to analyst Singingfish, RealPlayer remains the dominant media provider worldwide.

Analysts are predicting broadband customers will ultimately want a more diverse mix of services, rather than simply video content. In its overview of broadband trends for 2003, IDC identified voice services and videoconferencing as key applications in the Asia-Pacific region.

Nonetheless, it seems likely that demand for streaming video content will be a driver of broadband take-up.

According to AccuStream iMedia Research, more than 3.9 billion media streams were served worldwide in 2002. Of those, 62.5 per cent were accessed on broadband connections.