Content Sources: The phrase “Content Source” is defined as the operation of receiving the video content from the producers or the other sources. Thereafter, these contents are encoded and stored on the video-on-demand database.
Service Points: The phrase “Service Point" is used to indicate the operation of receiving the video flow in different formats. Such video flows in different formats are later reformatted and it is subject to the enveloping operation for transmitting along with the indicators that indicate the service quality fitting the wide area distribution network.
Service points from the perspective of service management; is in the state of communication with the device in the hand of the subscriber and additionally, the commencement of the operation and digital rights management.
Wide Area Distribution Network: The principles that the wide area distribution network takes as basis are the distribution ability and the service quality. A wide area distribution network that the IPTV service is demanded to be offered through must have some other abilities as well.
For instance, the multicast ability. The multicast ability is required for providing “reliable” and “on-time” IPTV data flow from the service points to the homes of the subscribers.
Depending on the type of the used network, there are core structures in the distribution points of the network backbone such as the DSLAM in DSL networks or Fiber Node in Cable TV networks.
User Access Lines: High speed technologies are required in the access lines being used.
For instance, the ADSL+ and VDSL technologies for the DSL technologies. With such type of technology, the distribution can be provided to the users through the network available through the telephone lines.
There are also other options. The service providers can also utilize a combination of fiber to the kerb (FTTC) and Cable TV technologies. Moreover, both the DSL and Cable TV operators can establish direct fiber to the home (FTTH) access as well. Along with these, the best result wanted to be achieved is depending on the richness of the services offered by the service providers.
User (Subscriber) Devices: Such devices are the ones located either in the home or office of the end-users, in other words the subscribers. Besides the function of ending the network, they can also have other features integrated to themselves. For instance; routing gateway, set-top-box or creating an in-house network.
IPTV Receiver: It is the unit that the IPTV traffic ends in the user environment. It is a device known as a receiver/receptor/set-top-box style device. Its functions are installing the connection and service quality with the service point and solving the encoding in the video flow, providing the channel changing, controlling the user screen and providing the connection to the television or monitors located in the homes of the users either in standard or high resolution.
Comparison of IPTV and Internet Television
Now let’s see the features making IPTV and Internet television different from each other. Actually it is really a difficult task to differentiate these two models. Differences can be explained with a depth study and analysis on this subject.
On one hand the IPTV represents a closed and private TV system. It is offered to the users as IP based safe channels. As a result, the controlling is high in the distribution of the content.
On the other hand, the Internet television has a structure offered by numerous video producers either small or middle scale in an open frame. It is an environment, in which many new contents are prepared comfortably. It is the reason of being an open environment that most classical channels can be provided through this way by means of wide distribution or by retail
