An upbeat report on interactive television from Ovum Ltd says, Interest in video on demand continues to flourish, but avoids concluding that it will be converted into commercial success. The report, Interactive Television: The Market Opportunity, details more than 50 worldwide trials and gives an indication as to their major suppliers. Ovum says the number of homes involved in trials will grow to nearly 20,000 next year, after which the number will begin to tail off as trials give way to commercial services. This is already beginning in the US and so the number of new trials in America was outstripped by Europe. Expansion In Europe was further stimulated by the European Union’s network liberalisation directive, set to come into operation in 1998, which has prompted the telecommunication firms to develop a variety of news services, including video on demand. US companies still dominate the list of the trials’ hardware suppliers with the exception of Philips Electronics NV.
