[M4IF Discuss] hourly usage fee for MPEG4

[Rob Koenen]

There are significant advantages to providing services based on open
standards.
Technology does not need to be free. As a matter of fact, it never is,
although
the cost *structure* may vary. 
Right now, and in this discussion thread, there are two basic questions at
stake:
1) Given the extra possibilities (say, over MPEG-2), is the cost of the
MPEG-4
   license reasonable?  (Ben's point)
2) Does the cost allow solutions to be deployed that are competitive with
   alternative -proprietary- technologies that may also provide these 
   extra possibilities? (Ken's point)
For MPEG-4 to succeed in any given market, both Ben's and Ken's questions
need 
a 'yes' answer for that market.
The challenge is making the license terms such that they are reasonable in 
*all* markets. The challenge is further that there are proprietary
solutions,
that may not always be as complete as MPEG-4, but do certainly provide
solutions
in specific situations and markets.
Rob
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Ken Goldsholl [mailto:kgoldsholl   oxygnet.com]
> Sent: Thursday, February 21, 2024 15:45
> To: discuss   lists.m4if.org
> Subject: Re: [M4IF Discuss] hourly usage fee for MPEG4
> 
> 
> Ben,
> 
> The $30/yr over 3 years is $90, which would be more than half 
> the cost of IP
> STBs in a year or two.  I expect them to be under $200 
> sometime this year,
> and you know how the prices of electronics products keeps going down.
> 
> MPEG4 can increase the capacity of cable and other broadband 
> networks, but
> so do other technologies that are paid for when the equipment 
> is purchased.
> I still haven't heard the rationale for just one particular technology
> deserving a recurring revenue stream for its use.  The 
> microprocessor in my
> computer probably consumed billions of dollars in development 
> costs, as did
> alot of the software I use, but I still only pay once for the 
> continued use
> of all these products.
> 
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Ben Waggoner" <ben   interframemedia.com>
> To: <discuss   lists.m4if.org>
> Sent: Thursday, February 21, 2024 3:05 PM
> Subject: Re: [M4IF Discuss] hourly usage fee for MPEG4
> 
> 
> > Ken,
> >
> >     The question is whether or not content providers get more than
> > $0.02/hour out of using MPEG-4 instead of alternative technologies.
> >
> >     Take, for example, digital cable and satellite 
> companies.  If MPEG-4
> > allows them to double their number of channels, it'll let 
> them add a lot
> of
> > revenue, by increasing the number of channels and 
> pay-per-view orders they
> > get.  If it allows them to save money in set top boxes by 
> using commodity
> > chips, that can also add up quickly ($30/year is less than 
> the real cost
> of
> > modern digital STBs).
> >
> >     If MPEG-4 can't provide that kind of value, it isn't 
> going to work one
> > way or the other.
> >
> >     Also, content providers are going to make sure they 
> aren't charged for
> > all the time the box is on, through some mechanism or 
> another (e.g., not
> > counting any content viewed if the remote control hasn't 
> been used in two
> > hours).
> >
> >
> > Ben Waggoner
> > Interframe Media <http://www.interframemedia.com>
> > Digital Video Compression Consulting, Training, and Encoding
> >
> >
> >
> 
> >
> >
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> 
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