Ron Thomson is CEO of Cameron Thomson Group, a Toronto-based business development company specializing in providing corporate development and investment banking services to the media, IT and entertainment industries.

All around the world, television is morphing into something different - something portable and something so much more entertaining and interactive than most industry experts would have predicted.

Technology is, of course, the driver. But it's not the technology of transmission - that is somewhat the same. The lesser known "under the hood" global story that this piece will explore are two drivers: the receiving and distribution of video, audio and interactive gaming media - the business end of the digital TV revolution - and content and new platforms for cell phones.

In fact, two parallel technologies are driving this revolution under the overall digital umbrella. The first is "smart card" and voucher-based systems for digital access and security, and the second is interactive cellular telephones. Many have heard of the joint Motorola/Apple iTunes music phone - that is just the beginning.

In high-tech Germany, even MTV is becoming involved with smart cards. In a joint effort with Norway's Conax AS and TechniSat, MTV is encrypted and made available free of charge for one month on the cards distributed with TechniSat set-top boxes (STBs). This concept differentiates the TechniSat offering, helping the company to maintain its position as the market leader in providing STBs to the German market. Scratch cards with sealed numbers are produced with MTV logo and product info and sold through the TechniSat distribution network. This implies that the consumer, after the free trial period, can buy further access to MTV by reporting the scratch card ID and number to Conax's back-end system.

"The introduction of an open platform for Germany can be healthy for this market," notes Geir Bjørndal, Conax's VP sales and marketing.

Some of the former low-tech countries are adopting high-tech digital television solutions. In Ukraine and former Communist countries of eastern Europe, for example, old television systems have been junked, and advanced systems have been installed, providing unprecedented choice at a relatively small capital investment.

As an example, Volia, launched in the 1980s, is the top cable system in Kiev, the Ukraine's capital. The Kiev system is very similar to those in North America, according to Valery Salyamov, Volia's VP strategic planning and development. "We have packages and tiers just like in North America - basic, extended and movie and sports packages," he says.

"In 2000-2001, people started asking for more interesting content. It was a challenge to offer more channels quickly," Salyamov says in recounting his move to digital. Volia had to accomplish that while increasing subscriptions, revenues, penetration, and increasing profits.

"We quickly had to digitize the network," Salyamov adds. "Even though the network was old, we tested digital content on it. Instead of one analog channel, we could provide up to 10 digital channels, easily converting three or four analog channels into 40 digital channels. That was the quick solution to the problem."