IN FOCUS | REVIEW: IPTV AND WEB-TV treaming is all the rage. Offers V imeo or social media giant Facebook We focused not only on picture and from Netflix, Amazon Prime are also using video content to try to sound quality, but also on other Sor Zattoo compete on at least woo viewers. practical aspects such as startup, res- an equal footing with classic TV and ponse and switching times. video content to attract users. Conven- Quality under Cable-based offers such as Giga TV tional, linear TV broadcasts can also the microscope from Vodafone or the comparable ser- be received via a DSL or cable internet What video is particularly interested vices from Unitymedia were not inclu- connection, and thus constitutes a in is the quality of these offerings – in ded in the test. This was due to a tech- fourth option alongside cable, satellite terms of both content and technology. nical reason; TV reception for these and antenna. Combined formats such Therefore, we have once again joined products is based on DVB-C, not on as pay television streaming as part of a forces with the network test specialist the internet protocol (IP), which is “Sky Ticket” or watching classic zafaco this year and put the relevant what the measurement method used TV channels using services like services under the microscope. Over a here concentrates on. Zattoo play with the new possibilities four-week period, zafaco’s measure- But now it’s time to draw the cur- and are breaking down old bounda- ment systems recorded and analysed tains and reveal our extensive compa- ries. And as if all this weren’t enough, more than 1.1 million measurements rative test of IPTV and web TV offers. internet services such as YouTube, for the 14 products covered by the test. Some of the results may surprise you. Telekom EntertainTV Test rating: very good Price/performance: very good 89% IPTV EntertainTV is already Telekom’s se- provided the copyright holder allows Excellent picture quality; Germany- cond IPTV platform – this current this). The “Media Receiver MR401” user-friendly features; wide version has been available since May has a clear interface and allows remote extensive range of content 2016. It can be added as an optional programming of recordings via the Additional functions only service to DSL and VDSL lines for an app as well as access to YouTube and available with more expensive EntertainTV Plus additional price starting at 5 euros/ Netflix. An additional MR200 re- month. The basic package comes with ceiver can be used in a second room. more than 100 TV channels, around The measurements taken from the 20 of which are in HD. If you pay Telekom service are also impressive. In another 5 euros/month, you get additio- addition to excellent picture quality, WINNER TEST nal HD channels and useful functions the Telekom receiver boasts very good such as “Restart” (restarting a running starting and zapping times in all the programme from the beginning) or tested scenarios: with and without “Replay” (playing back a missed pro- additional load on the line or receiving EntertainTV uses IPTV options – such as the gramme within a 7-day window, two IPTV streams. restart of programmes that are already running. Vodafone TV Test rating: very good Price/performance: good 83% IPTV STREAMING Currently Vodafone only offers the already configured to receive 4K in Germany- Excellent picture quality, power- technically more modern “Giga TV” the future. It also provides access to ful set-top box with additional wide to its cable customers. For receiving many broadcasters’ media centres, as satellite reception and ready for 4K per (V)DSL, “Vodafone TV” has been well as video-on-­demand services. UHD not activated yet; available since 2011. But even this If you wish, you can even run two slightly higher error rates in the test PROVIDERS service still has a lot to offer: For an TV Center 2000s on two televisions additional 8.99 euros/month, it allows simultaneously. Thanks to video streaming via IP data packets, the amount of available entertainment content is viewing of more than 90 TV channels, The test showed that Vodafone TV up to 37 of which are in HD. also has excellent picture quality and continuously on the rise. Classic TV broadcasters using IPTV and network-based services like Netflix, Other pay TV, HD and foreign very short starting and zapping times language packages are available as – although additional downloads, Amazon Prime Video or Sky Ticket are competing with video content on YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook etc. to optional extras. The “TV Center calls or two IPTV streams place a load 2000” IPTV receiver provides so- on the line. A small fly in the oint- attract viewers. We put the quality of the providers’ technology and content to the test. By Hannes Ruegheimer mething out of the ordinary: It can ment, however, is the slightly higher The Düsseldorf-based company offers the slightly also receive digital satellite TV and is error rates measured in the test. outdated “Vodafone TV” for DSL from 16 MBit/s up. 40 Pictures: zafaco; Screenshots: Hannes Ruegheimer www.technite.video | 12_2018 41 IN FOCUS | REVIEW: IPTV AND WEB-TV 1&1 Digital TV Test rating: satisfactory M-net TV Plus Test rating: satisfactory Price/performance: satisfactory 64% Price/performance: satisfactory 64% IPTV IPTV Germany- 1&1 provides new customers with a possible to use a parallel Sky subscrip- Very good picture quality overall; The Munich-based provider opera- are also available. This offering is Very good picture quality overall; ex- regional wide completely new IPTV offering based tion via IPTV. state-of-the-art service; tes in the Bavarian state capital, in also based on the B2B platform tensive HD offering; numerous func- on the B2B platform from Swiss The measurement results show that can be used on many devices and around Ulm, in other regions of from Zattoo and can be received tions; can be used on many devices streaming specialist Zattoo. Existing the new platform has room for Worse picture quality than Bavaria and the Main/Kinzig via the “TVplus-Box”, AppleTV, Long startup times on the set-top customers can switch, but must improvement – in picture quality, predecessor; slow zapping district in the state of Hesse. The FireTV as well as on a tablet or box; slow zapping times; higher times; high error rates error rates then book a new VDSL tariff. switching and response times as well “TV plus” service can be added to the smartphone. 50 Mbit/s are a prerequisite. Then as error rates. As zafaco still has con- provider’s VDSL and fibre-optic lines The results here are also mixed: you can get “Digital TV” for nections for the old “1&1 Digital TV for 9.90 euros/month. The basic The picture quality is rated 9.99 euros/month with around – provided by Telekom” we also package comes with around “very good” and achieves the same 90 TV channels, about 20 of which evaluated these outside the competi- 100 channels, about 40 of which are level as the other Zattoo B2B-based are in HD. In addition to the tion framework. As the table on the provided in HD. An additional HD candidates 1&1, NetCologne and “1&1 TV-Box”, it is also possible to page opposite shows, the old product package for 4.90 euros/month EWE. But similarly, the startup receive via AppleTV, FireTV, tablet or performs better in almost all cate- adds a further 18 private and and zapping times on the set-top smartphone. Compared to the old gories – 1&1 needs to iron out a few The new IPTV offering from 1&1 is more state- pay television stations in HD. A box leave something to be desired, Even the “M-net TV plus” basic package offers platform, however, it is no longer problems in the new offering. of-the-art, but the measurements are worse. number of foreign-lan guage packages and we also saw higher error rates. a large choice of 40 HD stations. TEST WINNER TEST WINNER REGIONAL IPTV TEST RESULTS GERMANY-WIDE NetCologne Net TV Test rating: satisfactory Provider Telekom Vodafone 1&1 NetCologne EWE M-net 1&1 Price/performance: satisfactory Product EntertainTV Vodafone TV Digital-TV NetTV TV Home TV plus Digital TV prov. by Telekom * 67% Info on the internet www.entertaintv.de www.vodafone.de dsl.1und1.de/fernsehen www.netcologne.de www.ewe.de/zuhause/tv www.M-net.de/tvplus dsl.1und1.de IPTV PICTURE QUALITY (max. 99 points) excellent (91%) 90 excellent (91%) 90 very good (82%) 81 very good (82%) 81 very good (82%) 81 very good (82%) 81 excellent (91%) 90 regional New to the test this year are regional product above, “Net TV” is also Very good picture quality overall; IP-TV without/with addit. load (33/33) 30 / 30 30 / 30 27 / 27 27 / 27 27 / 27 27 / 27 30 / 30 providers (products with a market based on the B2B platform from numerous functions; can be IP-TV with load and 2 streams (33) 30 30 27 27 27 27 30 share of less than two percent). Zattoo. The Cologne-based company used on many devices SOUND (max. 40 points) very good (80%) 32 very good (80%) 32 very good (80%) 32 very good (80%) 32 very good (80%) 32 very good (80%) 32 very good (80%) 32 PC (20) / TV/home cinema (20) 16 / 16 16 / 16 16 / 16 16 / 16 16 / 16 16 / 16 16 / 16 “Net TV” is therefore an add-on offers a separate set-top box, but Long startup times on the OFFERING (max.