Getting to grips with this convergence thing

Anyone with a couple of hours to kill and a curiosity to see life on the other side of the fence from the normal telcos-trying-to-do-TV scenario, should tune into this briefing held yesterday in London by BSkyB. (Interestingly, the portrayal of the movie download service was strikingly different to the experience related here. I'm also curious to know what, if anything, changes in light of Kontiki's acquisition by, of all people, Verisign.)

For my money this presentation, in which a roomful of media analysts gets a crash course in ULL and fiber backbones, seems to underline once again how sector silo coverage of the market is going to be increasingly non-viable in future. Those who get an upper hand in grappling with this early on are going to be in an advantageous position - and I think it will be the small, nimble and unorthodox brokers who reap the rewards. Incidentally, recent personnel shifts at Daiwa suggest that my own coverage may be much more diversified in future than it is at present - both geographically and sectorally. Watch this space.