IPTV for businesses: hotels, hospitality and offices

What to consider when looking for a TV solution for your business: business subscriptions, public screening, royalties, multiple screens and hotel IPTV.

Updated: 15 October 20262 min read

In short

Businesses need a subscription for business, commercial use rather than a residential one.
Showing TV in a public place may also involve paying royalties to collective management organisations.
Hotels and larger venues use centrally managed IPTV systems designed for many screens.

Why do you need a business subscription?

Residential subscriptions are for private viewing within a household. Showing TV to guests, customers or employees is commercial use, so rights holders and providers apply separate conditions. More: TV in public places.

Typical use cases

Venue	Typical need	What to watch out for
Hotel	TV in every room, custom welcome screen	Hotel licences, central management
Restaurant or bar	Sports broadcasts, background TV	Public screening licence, royalties
Waiting room, shop	News, background content	Royalties for public performance
Office	News channels, events	A subscription for business use

Criteria for choosing a solution

Number of screensOn how many TVs and which devices does the service need to run?
Scope of the licenceDoes it cover public screening, especially of sport?
Central managementAt larger venues it is important to manage channels and screens from one place.
NetworkMany screens need a suitably sized, preferably wired network. See: bandwidth.
SupportIn a business environment, fast fault repair is especially important.

Partnering with providers

You can find out about Stream Technology's business solutions and cooperation with DVB-C providers on the Business page, and for custom requirements you can reach us via the contact page.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use my residential subscription in my café?

Usually not: a residential subscription is for private viewing; public screening requires a business subscription and settled royalties.

Do I have to pay royalties for TV playing in the background?

A programme that can be seen and heard in a public place may count as a public performance. Check the exact obligations with the collective management organisations.

Law and regulationTV in public places: restaurants, hotels and waiting roomsCan you switch on your home subscription in a café or hotel? What counts as a public performance, and which licences and royalties are required?3 min read Devices and setupMultiple devices, one subscription: device and stream limitsHow many devices can you watch on at once, what is the difference between registered devices and simultaneous streams, and how much internet does a family need?2 min read Choosing and subscribingHow to choose an IPTV provider: a 10-point checklistLegality, channels, devices, picture quality, features, price, contract and customer service: what to check before subscribing to IPTV or streaming TV.2 min read

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