IPTV World Forum’s main conference got off to a bad start today when it kicked off at 9am with hundreds of delegates still locked outside the venue. The chaotic arrangements for ticket collection meant that it took 30 to 45 minutes to get inside to hear the conference. This clearly affected the attendance at Dr Werner’s keynote, with a steady flow of people arriving as the presentation progressed. I mentioned last year that the organisers need to find a new venue. Olympia really doesn’t fit the bill any more and the conference facilities are just not up to modern standards. Now that Informa has taken over the event I would hope that there is enough funding to provide for a better conference and exhibition facility next year. Otherwise the sight of senior industry executives, delegates and press queuing half way down the street to pick up tickets will be repeated. Nicolas Bry, CMO Products and Services at Neuf Cegetel, was lucky to be chosen as the second speaker, when the auditorium was beginning to fill up. Mr Bry gave some interesting insights into the success of Neuf Cegetel’s IPTV service, particularly with regard to VOD. He claimed that 40% of triple play subscribers are aware that VOD is available, and that 8% have actually paid for a VOD event. In total he estimates IPTV VOD revenues in France at €30m in 2007. The key barrier to higher VOD revenues is still awareness and the habits of TV viewers, and it will take time to change these. Neuf Cegetel hopes that the new version of Microsoft’s Mediaroom middleware, which allows operators to present VOD movie titles as mini-DVD covers, will improve take-up. Client Reading: US IPTV Forecast and Outlook: $13.7 Billion by 2012