What is IPTV? More about this trending technology will revolutionize the digital media in 2023

IPTV is growing very fast, with new providers and services appearing alongside traditional TV.
But what does it mean? How it works? And how can you use it to improve your TV experience?

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What exactly is IPTV?

IPTV stands for “Internet Protocol Television”. “IP” is the same as your IP address or VoIP (Voice over IP). All that means is that television programming is communicated using the Internet Protocol.

To understand what this means, you need to know a bit more about how non-IPTV works. With cable or satellite television, broadcasters send signals and viewers receive them. You can only watch what is broadcast. Unless you have some sort of recording device, you can’t dictate what happens and when. You log in when you can and see what’s available.

IPTV is different. Instead of transmitting content via light pulses in a fiber optic cable or radio waves from a satellite, it sends shows and movies over your standard internet connection. (You may be using a cable or satellite internet connection, but these are independent of the ones that typically carry your TV signals.)
Instead of airing a range of shows on a specific schedule, most IPTVs use video-on-demand (VOD) or time-shifted media.

There’s a complicated network architecture behind all of this to make it work, including a lot of transcoding from traditional signals to IP-compatible signals. But the important thing is that you don’t have to watch what’s being broadcast. You can tell your provider what you want to watch and they will send it to you right away.
If you’ve used a streaming service like Netflix or Hulu, it’s the same idea, but with TV instead of movies or syndicated shows.

Do you need a decoder for IPTV?

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To watch it on TV you need a SmartTV, or a set-top box that “translates” what you’re receiving over your internet connection into a format your TV can read.
Your computer, on the other hand, does not need anything else than using an app or software. Once you sign up for a service, you can use it to stream anything you want in any of the IPTV formats.

You will need only to download an app or software that can stream the content. We recommend to use the free app IPTV Smarters Pro with a user friendly interface.
So if you can mirror your screen to your TV, you can watch without a set-top box.

Hybrid IPTV

Many TV providers are now taking a hybrid approach to address some of the issues associated with all-IP broadcasts. IPTV requires a lot of bandwidth to transmit a ton of data at high speed.
Hybrid IPTV combines traditional television services with IP-based ones. The main selling point is that everything comes in one box. This allows TV providers to extend their offerings to their subscribers.
It also makes it easier to roll out new products and services without completely overhauling the set-top box. It’s a good way to go from a traditional model to a more modern one.

How does IPTV work?

There are three different formats. We will look at each of them individually.

Video on Demand (VOD)

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VOD streaming is exactly what it sounds like; you get video whenever you need it. Movie streaming sites are VOD providers. There is no time limit for what you can watch.
You tell the service what you want to watch, it sends it to you over the internet and you watch it.
Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime Video are popular examples of VOD services.

Live Channels

Just like TV broadcasting, you can also watch live broadcasts on IPTV. Many people watch sporting events this way.
Besides streaming over the Internet instead of traditional TV, Live IPTV is pretty much the same as regular TV.
FOX Sports Go, CBS Sports HQ, Bein Sport all offer live IPTV.

IPTV Services

Although IPTV is definitely growing, it is still a niche market. Services like Netflix and Hulu offer plenty of TV shows, and video on demand is growing rapidly.
It is the other IPTV formats, where there is significant potential to change the way people watch TV, that have yet to take off.

Catch-up television is increasingly popular. Downloading apps for providers like FOX, CBS, and NBC lets viewers catch missed shows without the effort of setting up and recording something through a set-top box like a TiVo.

Sports seems to be the area of ​​television that has adopted it the fastest. There are plenty of subscription-based sports packages that you can watch from your computer or stream to your TV whenever you want.
Many services are popping up that allow users to create their own VOD and live streaming services. This way, people can share their skills, advice, and passions with anyone in the world.

The benefits of IPTV

The following are some main advantages of IPTV:

  • Easy to install and use: to get started, all you have to do is buy a decoder or an Android TV box and connect it to your television. Plus, the Wi-Fi connectivity that the newer models have makes the process much easier.
  • 100% digital TV solution: the world is increasingly digital-centric. The switch to digital television is therefore an excellent basis for the future and new technologies.
  • It allows the simultaneous and smooth broadcasting of several programs: IPTV services allow users to simultaneously broadcast several programs on different devices (TV, PC, mobile phone, etc.).
  • It offers a variety of services: The multiple types of services offered by IPTV exist to meet the different tastes of consumers.
  • It allows users to have an ad-free experience: many people hate ads. So being able to skip them or fast forward them is a great quality of life improvement.
  • It offers incredible time savings and flexibility: not having to wait for the start of the broadcast at specific times and the ability to skip advertisements explain the appeal of IPTV for users around the world. entire.

The future of IPTV

It is difficult to say how many people currently use this new technology. With the wide variety of providers, different formats…
But there is no doubt that it will grow in popularity. Research estimates that the market will be worth over $117 billion by 2025. Rising user demand along with network improvements will support this growth.
It also predicts that subscriptions will grow rapidly over the next decade, suggesting that services like TV Player and Hulu Live TV will grow in popularity.
Some of this growth has already begun.

Major media providers plan to offer new streaming services to rival Netflix, Amazon Prime and other streaming heavyweights. And more traditional TV providers allow time-shifted media through their apps. Even cable companies allow their subscribers to watch from their phones.
And now that people can create their own channels to easily distribute their content, the amount and variety of options will increase rapidly. Viewers will no longer be limited to what broadcasters share; they’ll be able to go to each other to see everything from fitness videos to audience-specific movies.
In short, the future of television is IPTV.