IPTV in the Classroom and the Bedroom

Posted on July 10, 2006
Filed Under Channels and Content, What's New |

I got a press release through from Minerva networks today. The subject was a Minerva sale to Multimedia Polska, one of the largest telecom players in central Europe. Good for Minerva, of course, but there are more interesting developments.

More interesting is Minerva’s take on tangential IPTV application areas, particularly hotels and campuses. Hotels are suffering from the effects of an inflated property market, i.e more competition. We’ve seen ‘em build boutique hotels, Spas and glamour hotels and now there’s IPTV as a differentiator. Don’t bank on the first ideas though Minerva.

With IPTV it would be possible for a hotel guest to access time-shift and video-on-demand services. With campuses, it’s possible for lecturers to upload material for students to access any time around the capus - beats sitting in lecture halls and might give colleges a more rational way to manage facilities.

These applications though strike me as routine, going on mundane. People want to engage with other people, and they want to be creative, so would there not be possibilities in resort hotels, for creaative outlets, competitions across a hotel chains properties, live performance channels from guests (yes it could get saucy).

I don’t want to say life’s got to be a caberet, ever day but there’s much to be done with IPTV on the creative side. What about getting guests to review local venues, restaurants, room service? Dangerous, that last one. A decent sized chain could produce a working compendium of local restaurant reviews, across the world. Now there’s added-value.

A hotel’s a natural meeting place, so what about those weekend murder mysteries turning into something more dynamic. A hotel could engage in a continuous dialgoue with guests, in situ and later when they are at home. Don’t want to engage so much with clients? My biggest complaint about hotels is the time I spend bored flicking through TV channels. If I could connect in some way with other guests or with a creative activity, I’d go back.

Likewise with campuses. Many kids there want to find a showcast for their creative talents. It can be more important than formal courseware. We’re moving towards a creative society and every campus should have its alternative, IPTV, brains trust.

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