Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) Mediaroom is holding its own and even gaining a little in the IPTV middleware space, according to statistics released by ABI Research.
By mid-2012, the software giant had its middleware in about 23 percent of all deployed set-top boxes and that share "continues to grow," the research firm said.
The biggest competition to Microsoft's dominance is coming from outside the United States, particularly in Asia-Pacific, where Chinese system integrators Huawei and ZTE are growing steadily based primarily on the successful expansion of China Telecom.
Sam Rosen, ABI Research director for TV and video, made it a point to note the difference between system integrators who provide an end-to-end IPTV solution and vendors who specialize in applications and customer experience.
"With the exception of Cisco (Nasdaq: CSCO), who recently purchased NDS, the system integrator's role in customer experience will likely decline over the next few years," Rosen said. "Instead, this role will be left to client-centric middleware companies with better user experience."
ABI, like other research firms, expects the IPTV business to boom in the coming years, predicting that it will grow from 80 million households this year to 117 million in 2017, fueled by Asia-Pacific players.
For more:
- ABI Research issued this news release
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