Digital Lifescapes

The digital TV and video entertainment market will expand via online and mobile delivery of new media. This new growth will be driven by network operator owned services, such as Internet Protocol Television (IPTV), or through Over The Top (OTT) video streaming services such as Amazon Prime, Netflix and Hulu among others. Meanwhile, traditional pay-TV operators and terrestrial over-the-air TV broadcasters will continue to be disrupted by new digital technologies and new business models. Furthermore, the impact of the ongoing video entertainment transformation could also create new challenges for the Cinema theater sector. According to the latest market study by Juniper Research, ultra high-definition television (UHDTV) streaming video services -- i.e. 4K OTT -- content will start to reach the mainstream market soon, with adoption set to soar over the next 5 years. How Connected TV Fueled the Disruption Note, 4K is a term that was originally used to describe the cinema projection...

3DTV prices have fallen by close to 40 percent in some cases, and adoption of 3DTV is occurring at a faster rate in most territories than it did for high-definition television (HDTV), according to the latest market study by Futuresource Consulting . Futuresource expects global sales of 3DTVs to exceed four million this year. Across Western Europe alone, 1.2 million 3DTVs will be sold, rising to more than three million in 2011. In the U.S. market, more than five million 3DTVs will be sold next year. "3DTV will continue to provide premium brand CE manufacturers with a way to differentiate themselves from the competition and add value for consumers," says Bill Foster, Senior Technology Consultant at Futuresource Consulting. For systems that use active glasses technology, manufacturers are now able to embed 3D chipsets at a relatively low cost, allowing them to increase their margins while still keeping 3D affordable. Passive glasses technology, as used in cinemas, is sti...

As High-Definition (HD) video reached its stride worldwide, the TV and film industry are now looking ahead to the next new digital video innovation. 3D TV and Ultra-HD (UHD) are on the horizon, according to the latest market study by In-Stat . 3D video is already out of the gate, with growing proliferation of 3D films in movie theaters. Pay-TV operators are in the early stages of deploying 3D TV capability. Early 3D TV sets and 3D Blu-Ray players will ship in 2010. In-Stat projects worldwide 3D TV shipments will reach 41 million in 2014. 3D Blu-ray player shipments will track closely with 3D TV sets. UHD will take considerably longer to roll out, but has started to garner interest and discussion among long-term planners in the TV, film and technology industries. In-Stat believes the first UHD broadcasts will start around 2017. UHD TVs will reach about 5 percent household penetration in some regional markets in the early 2020s. Technology companies, broadcast systems vendors and consum...

Global sales of digital projectors were slow in the first half this year. Global Q2 volumes reached nearly 1.3 million units, representing a 16 percent year-on-year drop from Q2 2008, according to the latest market study by Futuresource. With buyers continuing to hold back on spending, the corporate sector is expected to remain relatively flat for the rest of the year. However, the education market continues to offer strong growth opportunities, with budget levels remaining relatively unaffected. To underline this point, Q2 sales of interactive whiteboards have grown by 35 percent year-on-year, reaching 180,000 units globally. The second half of 2009 is expected to experience numerous large RFPs, with many emerging countries seeking to invest in IT for their education infrastructures. While overall market volumes have been weak, some bright spots include the continued emergence of the short throw and Wide XGA categories. With many whiteboard vendors now offering all-in-one board and pr...

Ready or not, 3D is coming with backing from all major sectors of the entertainment and consumer electronics industries. 3D movie production is intensifying, cinemas all over the world are investing in 3D technologies and feedback from audiences has been highly positive. Yet the ultimate goal is to bring 3D to the home, and a Futuresource Consulting market study reveals studios, consumer electronics companies, broadcasters, video game vendors and network operators are all poised to promote 3D. "Consumers are starting to experience the new wave of 3D technologies at the cinema and through Digital Out of Home advertising, and it won't be long before there's a groundswell of demand for 3D within the home," says Sarah Carroll, Director at Futuresource. With over 200 million new TVs sold across the globe every year, the potential is huge, but the industry needs to overcome some serious obstacles in order to kick start and fully realize the revenue streams. Most notably, te...

It's predicted that 2009 is set to be the year for 3D, a reality that was apparent across the breadth of the recent Consumer Electronics Show, with many key players in the industry ready to showcase their capabilities. With a myriad of competing technologies and 3D concepts out there, Futuresource Consulting announced the launch of a new market study outlining opportunities and challenges for 3D in cinema, broadcasting, TV display equipment, gaming, video content delivery and the outdoor advertising and digital signage industries. Hollywood's ultimate goal is to bring 3D Cinema into people's homes to fully maximize this revenue stream, as only 25-30 percent of the revenues a studio earns from a blockbuster film come from the box office. "Crucially, much of the backbone technology has arrived and is already in many people's homes, without them even realizing it," says Sarah Carroll, Director Strategy Consulting & Continuous Services, Futuresource Consulting...