Within the next three years, more than 16 million U.S. TV households may be using their broadband service more than they use their TV sets today, according to an In-Stat market study.
This is one of the key findings of an In-Stat survey of U.S. consumers about TV viewing, media, and online habits, the high-tech market research firm says. Survey respondents had a broadband connection, a TV set, and were 18 years of age or older.
"Today's stable and profitable subscription TV services are facing new competition from online and mobile entertainment services, and from new, high-quality packaged goods, such as HD-DVD and Blu-ray discs," says Gerry Kaufhold, In-Stat analyst.
The very nature of what consumers call entertainment is undergoing a profound change in which the ability to instantly share content with friends, family members, and those connected on social networks or buddy lists is creating micro user communities that replace traditional entertainment sources such as TV programs.
As more high-quality content becomes available online, savvy consumers are considering ways to reduce their monthly bills by getting everything from the Internet.
The In-Stat study entitled "U.S. TV Viewer Survey: Online Bids to Usurp Pay TV" covers consumer attitudes and perceptions about television viewing, media, and online habits. It provides analysis of a recent survey of consumers regarding their media consumption.
In-Stat's market study also revealed the following:
- Up to 30 percent of respondents would gladly drop subscription pay-TV and use the Internet for TV.
- 42 percent of respondents said that they are not getting enough international news and information from their current TV delivery services, even though there are hundreds of channels available.
- Surprisingly, nearly 40 percent of all respondents essentially said "This is the first I've heard of the U.S. analog TV cut off mandate in February 2009."
