As the worldwide media player market matures, with shipment growth of only 5 percent in 2009, competitors are scrambling to add features such as touchscreens and Wi-Fi connectivity to re-ignite demand, according to the latest In-Stat market study.
Just a few years ago, the Personal Media Player (PMP or MP3) player market was among the strongest growth segments in the portable consumer electronic (CE) industry.
Today, the market is stalled due to weak consumer demand, a poor economic environment, a stalled replacement market, and competition from the iPhone and other audio/video-capable smartphones.
"Among the lone bright spots in the PMP market is Wi-Fi enabled PMPs," says Stephanie Ethier, In-Stat analyst. "Unit shipments of Wi-Fi-enabled PMPs will grow more than four-fold by 2013 from the 14 million units shipped in 2008."
In-Stat's market study found the following:
- Total worldwide shipments of PMP players will reach 225 million in 2009, with Asia Pacific representing the largest geographic market.
- The market is decidedly shifting to video-enabled (multimedia) devices. By 2013, only 15 percent of PMP players will be audio-only devices.
- Among the key PMP competitors are: Apple, Archos, Creative Technology, iRiver, ZVUE Corporation, Microsoft, SanDisk, Samsung, and Toshiba.
- The total semiconductor opportunity for PMP/MP3 player suppliers has peaked and will decline below $5 billion by 2013. NAND Flash and Video processors make up the majority of semiconductor revenue.
- Among the key PMP Semiconductor competitors are: Actions Semiconductor, NVIDIA, Texas Instruments, Toshiba Semiconductor, Freescale Semiconductor (SigmaTel).
Just a few years ago, the Personal Media Player (PMP or MP3) player market was among the strongest growth segments in the portable consumer electronic (CE) industry.
Today, the market is stalled due to weak consumer demand, a poor economic environment, a stalled replacement market, and competition from the iPhone and other audio/video-capable smartphones.
"Among the lone bright spots in the PMP market is Wi-Fi enabled PMPs," says Stephanie Ethier, In-Stat analyst. "Unit shipments of Wi-Fi-enabled PMPs will grow more than four-fold by 2013 from the 14 million units shipped in 2008."
In-Stat's market study found the following:
- Total worldwide shipments of PMP players will reach 225 million in 2009, with Asia Pacific representing the largest geographic market.
- The market is decidedly shifting to video-enabled (multimedia) devices. By 2013, only 15 percent of PMP players will be audio-only devices.
- Among the key PMP competitors are: Apple, Archos, Creative Technology, iRiver, ZVUE Corporation, Microsoft, SanDisk, Samsung, and Toshiba.
- The total semiconductor opportunity for PMP/MP3 player suppliers has peaked and will decline below $5 billion by 2013. NAND Flash and Video processors make up the majority of semiconductor revenue.
- Among the key PMP Semiconductor competitors are: Actions Semiconductor, NVIDIA, Texas Instruments, Toshiba Semiconductor, Freescale Semiconductor (SigmaTel).