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new or different about the service offering. Cable operators offering VoIP-based consumer voice services aren’t taking things to the next level. SIP, a key enabler for a range of premium features and applications, isn’t remotely prevalent. By replicating TDM voice in an IP package, cable operators have enjoyed some early success with nicely priced bundles, but they haven’t forced telcos to abandon the massive economies of scale they enjoy with legacy TDM networks. Bringing SIP-based services online in the near term makes sense, especially as it can open doors to small and medium business markets while setting the stage for future dominance in consumer telephony.

Also at the center of the conflict are premium television offerings where telcos are still the new entrant. Services like Verizon’s FiOS offer attractive packages and highly functional set-tops that are in some cases better than what the local cable providers offer. Flip on the tube, however, and its DirecTV, the satellite-based, redheaded stepchild, that may provide a better value proposition.

DirecTV is promoting its remote DVR capabilities heavily. This allows customers to program their home DVRs from a mobile phone or PC. In fairness to FiOS, its marketers are touting its ability to share DVR content with any set-top in the house. There is some incremental value here, but only because it puts double-dipping bean counters, who’d like every customer to pay a premium to have DVR service throughout the household, in their place.

The skirmish over premium DVR business is interesting, but it is not and should not be the main engagement in the cable versus telco battle. Every consumer that didn’t get rich at everyone else’s expense is considering ways to cut their monthly expenses. The threat to telcos and cable operators alike isn’t necessarily that subscribers will cancel their

la carte TV services, but they haven’t come to fruition. Congress has threatened to mandate such offerings, but folks on Capitol Hill are a bit busy these days inventing schemes to fund their pet projects while appearing to rescue the U.S. economy. It makes sense for telcos and cable operators to step up now and bring these offerings to market, especially before Congress decides to get involved.

There’s a big gap between basic cable and many of the add-on packages offered now. TV offerings are not far from being all-or-nothing propositions. In an environment where consumers need to make conservative spending decisions, nothing is better than all, particularly when “a little something” isn’t even an option. Do we need to pay for seven HBO channels if we just want to watch “Big Love” and “True Blood?” Do we need to pay for the local Milwaukee sports desk if we just want college hoops on ESPN U? No. We can live with live score updates and video streams online if it means saving even $15 or $30 a month. Most consumers would prefer to watch what they want, when they want, on the screen they want, as long as the price is reasonable.