[opendtv] Re: Walled gardens
- From: Craig Birkmaier <craig@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 10 Mar 2014 22:21:54 -0400
On Mar 10, 2014, at 8:33 PM, "Manfredi, Albert E"
<albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
> Perhaps you're confusing the single site with the entire network (i.e. the
> Internet). The individual site that requires authentication is walled, but
> when there are a zillion independent sites, with either no authentication
> required or with their individual independent authentication protocols, and
> Internet device you buy off the shelf can reach any of them, that makes the
> Internet unwalled. My bank site requires authentication, Craig. Does that
> make the Internet a walled garden?
No Bert, I'm not confusing anything but you. You're back to playing linguistic
game again.
Yes, the Internet is unwalled. Yes anyone can set up shop on the Internet. But
anyone can build walls around anything they want, including your bank; you
probably would not use that bank if their Internet portal was not secure. Walls
can protect as well as confine.
>
> AOL tried to wall it up, but the web became too huge and overpowering. Cell
> phone companies have created walled gardens in the US. Devices like the
> Kindle e-reader live in a walled garden (can only access Amazon content in
> the proper format for that device, and the content is downloaded over a
> special Amazon cell phone link).
>
Yes AOL tried to build a walled Internet. And yes it failed. Time Warner tried
to do much the same thing with their failed Full Service Network. Likewise, the
telcos struggled to keep their customers inside their walled gardens; to a
large extent Apple put an end to that, the Android. But the telcos appear to be
regrouping and may try again with LTE Broadcast.
As for Amazon you are incorrect. The Kindle does live in a walled garden, but
it makes extensive use of the Internet, not a proprietary link. There are
Kindle apps for iOS and Android, and you can access your purchased e-book
library from anywhere on multiple devices. You cannot buy Amazon E-books from
the iOS or Android apps, but you can go to the Amazon website from your browser
and buy Amazon E-books; this avoids the 30% fees that Apple and others charge
for in app purchases.
> Compare the Internet with a traditional cable or satellite MVPD. You can only
> access the MVPD content by physically connecting to their unique cable or RF
> channel, via a single authentication protocol, through hardware imposed by
> that single company. That's a walled garden network. The Internet ain't.
Yup. These are proprietary systems optimized to deliver video streams. As I
have said multiple times recently, the DBS systems are at a significant
disadvantage. But the same cable or fibers that deliver MVPD services ALSO
carry the high speed ISP service that most U.S. Homes use to access the
Internet. Comcast has many more ISP customers than MVPD customers, although
there is huge overlap.
So you can call it whatever you want, but the non-DBS MVPDs are in the process
of moving their walled garden content yo the Internet. Yes there are many new
content sources out in cyberspace, but the MVPD content bundles still provide
exclusive content to 83% of U.S. homes, and it is likely that they will
continue to do so as they move the bits to the Internet.
Regards
Craig
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