PROVIDENCE — Cable television in Brown University’s dorms will be delivered exclusively over the Internet starting next school year.
Nearly three decades after it was built, Brown’s antiquated traditional cable system is in a “vast state of decay and has exceeded its usefulness,” Richard Bova, senior associate dean of residential life, told The Brown Daily Herald.
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In 2005, Brown launched IPTV — short for Internet Protocol Television — which streams cable channels onto students’ computers over the college’s data network. The service has proven popular, according to The Herald.
Now, rather than invest an “astronomical” amount of money in upgrading the old cable system, which was state-of-the-art when it was installed in 1980, the school has decided to do away with analog broadcasting altogether and instead rely solely on the IPTV system.
Students who want to watch IPTV broadcasts on a television set rather than a computer screen will need to get a special set-top box — a requirement that has drawn some grumbling on campus, The Herald reported, because students will have to pay for the boxes.
IPTV carries 32 channels, including all those currently available on the analog cable TV system, such as the broadcast networks, PBS, and MTV, according to the Brown IPTV Web site. There are also Brown channels that feature campus announcements, speakers, events and student work.
In fact, Bova said IPTV allows for a larger selection of channels than the traditional cable system.
