ABI Research Sees Opportunities for Telcos, Broadband, Portable and Mobile in Two-Camp Digital Rights Push.

OYSTER BAY, N.Y. -- The industry devoted to digital rights management (DRM) is shaping up into two camps with differing value chains and business alliances, according to studies conducted by ABI Research.

Ten years ago, whether a consumer received audiovisual content via cable or satellite, the situation was homogenous: service providers allying with equipment vendors to ensure that access was provided only to those who paid for it. Today, NDS, Nagra, Irdeto take advantage of their existing relationships in the DRM market place.

But now that group of traditional alliances has been joined by another: DRM vendors such as Microsoft, RealNetworks and Apple that work closely with the content-owning community to address the need for legal, downloadable materials that can be accessed through broadband networks. In time this channel will begin to become end-device agnostic.

These two camps, says director of broadband and residential entertainment technologies Vamsi Sistla, strive for the same goal - the greatest number of consumers purchasing the rights they control - but are approaching it from different directions.

Global DRM revenues will grow by at least 28% in 2005, Sistla forecasts, and the highest growth opportunities are among telcos, broadband, mobile and in portable markets. It is here, where DRM vendors partner with content owners and distributors, that the last decade's profound changes in global networking show their fullest impact.

The ABI Research study "Conditional Access & Digital Rights Management" considers global trends in revenue and shipments across cable, satellite, terrestrial, IP/telco, mobile and portable content technologies. For each platform, detailed segmentation is provided, including mobile content protection and portable devices content protection.

Founded in 1990 and headquartered in New York, ABI Research maintains global operations that support annual research programs, quarterly intelligence services and market reports in wireless, automotive, semiconductors, broadband, and energy. Their market research products can be found on the Web at www.abiresearch.com, or by calling 516.624.2500.