NO MORE BATTERY WASTE

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VICE PRESIDENT ENTERTAINMENT PRODUCTS,

“That expansion of the definition of entertainment is not something that we have come up with, but that's something that consumers are looking at the entire entertainment space. It's very logical for us, as a platform, to follow that definition and to make sure that things like gaming and smart homes also find their way onto the platform.”

As customers increasingly look for seamless experiences, Vervoort predicts that the future will see further convergence between fixed broadband services and mobile. “People less and less find it important to fully realise on what kind of platform they sit,” Vervoort says. “As a result, the mobile experience and the WiFi experience need to be absolutely seamless. It also comes with the obligation that the WiFi coverage needs to be there at speed in every corner of your home. It’s the same for mobile –every corner of your country needs to be covered with enough bandwidth.”

Liberty’s latest set-top box is designed with this increased fixed-mobile convergence in mind. “Our latest set-top box is very small and fully IP-based,” Vervoort explains. “But it's also fully cloud-based. With that, it can run over a hybrid fibre coaxial (HFC) cable, it can run over fibre, it can run over DSL, and it can run over a mobile network.

“As a result, it becomes agnostic and independent of its video delivery from the network. That's critical to us because we also have various fibre rollout plans in some of the markets in which we operate with our brands.”

Increased competition in the entertainment space

As competition between streaming platforms continues to increase, and consumers are faced with ever-more choices – with Netflix admitting last year that competition was eating into its growth – new strategies are necessary.

“If we look at the industry as a whole, I think there will be even more competition in future,” Vervoort predicts. “We already saw the rise of global streamers with Netflix and Disney, and all the others are following. You can find video services everywhere now. And, with players like TikTok and Instagram, a lot of consumers get a bit overwhelmed.”

As a result, with uncertain economic conditions globally causing consumers to re-evaluate and cut back on streaming services, providing bundled services will be central to Liberty Global’s strategy in future.

“We foresee a need to offer an aggregated, integrated, curated experience,” concludes Vervoort, “not only from a user interface perspective but also financially.

“Not everybody will sign up for 10, 11, or 12 different subscriptions, so there is an opportunity to also aggregate or bundle our services. By bundling various subscriptions, allowing people to pick and choose, this will allow customers to be more flexible in the way they consume their video content.”