PARIS – At the Broadband World Forum in Paris, service providers have been stating repeatedly that over-the-top players (content providers) need to invest in the network infrastructure that delivers their content. According to Thierry Bonhomme, SVP for Networks and Carriers at France Telecom “all parties should invest in the industry and not just the operator.” He says there is a need to re-balance the ecosystem.

Service providers feel like net neutrality will not only stifle business model innovation, but affect their bottom line. Essentially, price increases for consumers are expected if governments insist on enforcing net neutrality. Net neutrality means that service providers and governments cannot restrict access to networks or block content.

Secondly, as content providers do not have the same geographical constraints that service providers have, they can build global platforms and create much bigger economies of scale. For this reason, service providers are keen to partner with content providers and think that they can make a valuable contribution to any partnership. With extensive customer data including usage patterns and location information, and most importantly a trusted relationship with their customers, service providers think that they have a lot to offer OTT players who are willing to help pay for the pipes.

So are OTT players interested? The industry probably needs to conclude the net neutrality regulations before discussions on meaningful partnerships can begin, but ways in which service providers and content providers can collaborate are starting to emerge.