Skip to main content

Hybrid Set-Top Boxes Offer New Hope for Pay-TV

Here in the U.S. market, 2011 was a year that many in the traditional pay-TV service provider industry would rather forget. That being said, this year will include more of the same challenges, where the fundamental value proposition is being questioned by subscribers.

There are some bright spots, however, where pay-TV providers can use new technology and additional capabilities to add value to their legacy offerings. Some may also create new lower-cost offerings.

Hybrid set top boxes are a fast-growing segment of the worldwide set top box market. These boxes include a TV tuner and an Internet connection -- with the latter used to access a multitude of on-demand video content.

Hybrid STBs are appearing in all pay-TV service categories with new usage scenarios and creative apps helping to provide some new service development momentum.

As consumer connected TVs begin employing applications that deliver low-cost video content via the Internet, hybrid set top boxes will emerge as an essential countermeasure for the traditional pay-TV sector.

According to the latest market study by NPD In-Stat, they now forecast that 100 million hybrid STBs will ship in 2015.

"As the STB industry continues its forward march, the next logical iteration is for the set top box to enhance and expand traditional TV-related services by permitting access to content from the Internet, or from Internet-like web services that provide a walled garden of authorized content," says Gerry Kaufhold, Research Director at NPD In-Stat.

By combining traditional TV services with much-needed enhancements that are delivered via broadband, pay-TV service providers hope that they can successfully compete with all the emerging over-the-top offerings -- such as Netflix and Hulu.

In-Stat's latest market research findings include:
  • Over 23 million hybrid STBs will ship in North America in 2012.
  • The Asia Pacific annual revenue will approach $1.5 billion in 2015.
  • Satellite hybrid STBs will represent 58 percent of the hybrid STB market in 2013.

Popular posts from this blog

Mobility-as-a-Service Creates Disruptive Travel Options

Building on significant advances in big data, analytics, and the Internet of Things (IoT), more innovative transit service offerings aim to increase public transport ridership and reduce emissions or congestion within metropolitan areas. By providing these services through smartphone apps, the transit services also significantly increase user convenience, providing information on different human mobility offerings -- including public transport, ridesharing, and autonomous vehicles. Mobility-as-a-Service Market Development According to the latest market study by Juniper Research, Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) subscribers will generate $53 billion in revenue for MaaS platform providers by 2027 -- that's rising from $5.3 billion in 2021. Let's start with a basic definition. MaaS is the provision of multi-modal end-to-end travel services through single platforms, by which users can determine an optimal route and price. The study identified a monthly subscription model as key to incr
Read more

Robocall Mitigation Solutions to Halt Criminal Threats

If you answer the phone and hear a recorded message instead of a live person, it's likely a robocall. A robocall is a phone call that uses a computerized autodialer to deliver a pre-recorded message. In 2020, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) received 2.8 million consumer complaints about robocalls. Offering solutions to robocalling and associated fraudulent business practices, computerized mitigation platforms are an integral part of the solution. Platforms that are focused on actionable systems to disrupt unsolicited and potentially criminal phone calls help telecom service providers and industry regulators. Issues of whether one-size-fits-all developments are sufficient to be effective across the spectrum need to be addressed, and whether a single telecom network operator working unilaterally with a third-party platform could compromise desired or mandatory industry-wide standards. Robocall Mitigation Market Development According to the latest worldwide market study by Jun
Read more

Secure Digital Workspace Apps Enable the Future Enterprise

In early 2020, as the world responded to the COVID-19 pandemic disruption, many organizations were forced to rapidly transform their communications networks and IT infrastructure to support an unprecedented shift to remote work. Before the pandemic, approximately 38 percent of employees were remote full-time or had a flexible work arrangement where they split time between home and office locations. During the pandemic, the percentage of remote workers that CIOs had to support reached almost 72 percent. Future Enterprise Technology Market Development Enterprise leaders have been forced to adapt to a new state, shifting from traditional office-based operations to distributed workforce environments that must still provide the same level of connectivity, security, and efficiency across the organization. According to the latest worldwide market study by International Data Corporation (IDC), addressing connectivity across geographies and transforming networks to become more virtual and agile
Read more