Digital Lifescapes

In many markets across Western Europe, pay-TV services have already reached saturation. That's why Eastern Europe is so attractive to video entertainment service providers. It's a huge upside opportunity. The number of digital pay-TV subscribers will increase from 26.1 million (21.5 percent of TV households) in 2010 to 45.0 million (36.6 percent) in 2013 and eventually reach 73.6 million (58.2 percent) by 2020, according to the latest market study Digital TV Research. As Eastern Europe recovers from the region's economic recession, the number of digital TV homes will triple between 2010 and 2020 -- that's up from 41.0 million to 124.7 million. From the 52.3 million digital TV homes to be added between 2013 and 2020, DTT will supply 24.9 million, digital cable 15.3 million, IPTV 6.6 million and pay satellite TV 5.8 million. Digital TV penetration crossed the halfway mark of TV households in 2012, up from a third at end-2010. Fast adoption will push digital TV pen...

The Latin American video entertainment market is a focal point of many industry analysts, as growth in most of the established markets within developed nations reached saturation. Broadcast TV and pay-TV offerings in Latin American countries have a significant upside potential. Digital TV adoption is already growing in Latin America -- from only 18.1 percent penetration of TV households at end-2010 to just over the halfway mark by end-2014 and onto 94.5 percent by 2020, according to the latest market study by Digital TV Research. Put another way, 132 million digital TV households (in 19 countries) will be added between 2010 and 2020 to take the total to 157 million. Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) will provide half of the additional digital TV homes to be added between 2010 and 2020. "Much of this growth is being driven by satellite TV, especially lower-cost and prepaid packages – although these subscribers are forcing down average ARPU figures," said Simon Murray,...

By end 2012, North America and Western Europe had effectively made the transition from legacy analog broadcast technology to digital terrestrial television (DTT) broadcasts. The next milestone year (2015) was established by the ITU and a number of countries in Eastern Europe and Middle-East Africa are hoping to satisfy this goal. With a later start to digital services a number of countries in these regions are starting with DVB-T2, avoiding the conundrum facing established DVB-T markets looking to migrate to the newer technology. "If remaining analog shutoff timelines go largely as planned, we expect over 18 million DVB-T2 STBs will ship in 2015," said Michael Inouye, senior analyst at ABI Research . Other potential factors, like spectrum reallocation for mobile broadband in Western Europe, might increase the demand for DVB-T2 boxes, but this likely won't be a significant factor until the latter half -- if not past the 2018 forecasting window, according to the lat...

Infonetics Research released excerpts from its latest pay-TV subscribers market study and forecast -- which tracks IPTV, cable, satellite, hybrid set-top boxes (STBs) and over-the-top (OTT) media servers. "Contrary to popular opinion, the set-top box market is alive and well," says Julien Blin, directing analyst for consumer electronics and mobile broadband at Infonetics Research. STB revenue grew almost 10 percent in 2012, and that's a considerable rebound from a year ago. The global market will remain healthy in the near term as operators in China, India, and Latin America add new digital video entertainment services. Video gateways and media players will be the real standouts moving forward, as North American and European cable and satellite providers transition away from digital STBs. Infonetics says that they expect video gateways to grow from just 1 percent of total cable and satellite STB shipments in 2012 to 16 percent by 2017. They also expect to see s...

The global IPTV market will grow to $49 billion in service revenues and 113 million subscribers in 2015 -- as multiscreen video usage drives wireless services to new highs. According to the latest market study by MRG , systems revenue for the seven key IPTV products analyzed will grow to $4.8 billion in 2015, with set-top boxes (STB) representing about 60 percent. As consumers add Wi-Fi for using smart devices within their homes, market growth continues largely due to trends toward the mobile lifestyle habits of 18-55-year-olds. Based on semiannual updates of major global Operators and their differentiating services and updated subscriber counts, Europe remains ahead of Asia by 2015 in IPTV subscribers -- partially due to continued regulatory confusion in Asia. By 2015 worldwide, at least 25 IPTV Operators will have over 1 million subscribers, with 9 having over 3 million, the U.S. having 2 Operators with over 7.5 million each and Europe having 12 IPTV Operators wit...

Without a doubt, 2010 was a challenging year for the worldwide digital set-top box (STB) market, as total unit shipments decreased by 7 percent. It is likely that 2011 will also be a disappointing year, but there may be better news on the horizon. Fueled primarily by the analog-to-digital transition as well as upgrades of older devices to newer HDTV versions, HD and PVR versions, and Hybrid STBs with PVR capability and a broadband connection -- digital terrestrial STB unit shipments will approach 45 million units by 2015, according to the latest market study by In-Stat . "Digital set-top boxes continue to be key pieces of equipment for pay-TV service providers. For many service providers, the digital STB functions as their gateway into the home," says Mike Paxton, Research Director at In-Stat. In addition to their important position in the digital TV or pay-TV ecosystem, digital set-top boxes continue to offer an attractive market opportunity for STB manufacturers and s...

Satellite pay-TV providers in North America haven't added many new subscribers. Competition for subscribers has been an issue, and the fundamental value of all pay-TV services is being questioned by prospective customers. In particular, the U.S. market for video entertainment has also evolved -- due to the rapidly growing adoption of low-cost on-demand over-the-top (OTT) video services. In Europe, the market has less need for set-top boxes, because more TV sets have integrated satellite tuners and CI+ slots. As a result, according to the latest market study by In-Stat , shipments of satellite set-top boxes declined in 2010 by 8 percent -- in both the North American and Western European. "The decline in North America shipments moving forward will be a result of a movement to residential media servers, first by DirecTV, and then by other providers," says Michelle Abraham, Principal Analyst at In-Stat. The move to IP video clients will impact Europe as well, though m...

The broadcast digital terrestrial television (DTT) set-top box market continues to expand, as countries migrate from standard definition (SD) TV to high definition (HD) programs, and digital video recorders (DVR) become a standard feature. New products like hybrid web-to-TV set top boxes also will contribute to the long-term growth of DTT STBs pushing revenues to nearly $6 billion by 2014, according to the latest In-Stat market study. “The bulk of the market value resides in Western Europe and Asia-Pacific with the key growth regions being Latin America and Asia-Pacific,” says Gerry Kaufhold, Principal Analyst at In-Stat. Sezmi TV will spur moderate growth for HD-DVR STBs in the U.S. market. The Middle East and Africa hold potential but not until the economic situation improves and local governments decide how they will handle subsidizing DTT converter boxes. Some of the In-Stat market study findings include: - Europe is embracing High Definition and optional Pay-TV service...

During the past thirty years, television channel tuners have moved beyond TV sets, and found their way into Cable TV set-top boxes and Cable Modems, PC-TV tuners, and Digital Terrestrial TV (DTT) set-top boxes. Many satellite and telco pay-TV set-top boxes also include broadcast TV tuners. Although traditional can-type TV tuners are still the mainstream approach being used for high-volume television sets, the next-generation of ultra-slim TVs will need compact Silicon Tuners to enable thinner circuit boards, according to the latest market study by In-Stat . Smaller-screen TVs that need to add digital reception capabilities will also benefit from smaller, less power-hungry Silicon Tuners. "During this decade, the global market for TV Tuners will make an epochal transition from traditional can-type TV Tuners to all solid state Silicon Tuners" says Gerry Kaufhold, In-Stat analyst. The silicon tuner contenders have already displaced the can tuners in most Satellite TV and...

By and large, the traditional pay-TV user experience is very dependent upon the set-top box (STB) design and the capabilities of the associated electronic program guide (EPG). New STB designs tend to be significantly different -- smaller, more attractive -- than the typical legacy devices. Preliminary results from the IMS Research study of the market for set-top boxes and iDTVs has revealed that Pace plc has taken the number one ranking for worldwide digital STBs shipped to pay-TV customers for 2009, unseating Motorola. For 2009, the top five ranked set-top box manufacturers included Pace, Motorola, Technicolor (formerly Thomson), Cisco, and Humax. Apparently, Motorola's position is attributed to its leadership in the cable sector while Technicolor's focus and leadership continues to be in the satellite sector. According to Rebecca Kurlak, co-author of the IMS market study, STB shipments grew 15.2 percent year-over-year on a global basis from 2008 to 2009. Previously in ...

The average American home now has 2.93 television sets per household, up from 2.86 sets per home in 2009 -- the largest year-over-year increase since 2006 according to the latest Nielsen market study. This year the number of U.S. homes with three or more TV sets increased to 55 percent -- with 28 percent having two sets and 17 percent have just one set. The report also finds that while the total population continues to increase, the number of people per TV home holds steady at 2.5, continuing the recent trend of more TVs per home than people. Other findings from the Nielsen market study include: - Less than 10 percent of U.S. homes receive their TV signal over-the-air. - 34 percent of American homes have a digital video recorder (DVR). - 46 percent of U.S. homes are able to receive a high-definition (HD) signal. - Total advertising spending on U.S. Network television in 2009 is down 10 percent from last year while spending on Cable is up 16 percent. - The Business and...

According to the latest market study by Strategy Analytics , global Digital Television (DTV) subscriptions will grow from 484 million in 2010 to 887 million by 2014, with a five-year Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 16.34 percent. On a regional basis, Asia-Pacific, Central and Latin America and Central/Eastern Europe are expected to grow the fastest during the next five years. Cable TV continues to be the dominant television viewing platform, however over two-thirds of subscriptions worldwide still use analog services. This is expected to change rapidly, with digital cable households outnumbering analog starting in 2012. As countries roll out their respective Digital Switchover (DSO) programs, the relative importance of Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) as a primary viewing platform will increase. Although there has been much optimism about the future of Telco IPTV, Strategy Analytics believes that the technology may have encountered some setbacks. As such, they have sc...

In 2009, more than 100 million satellite pay-TV set-top box (STB) units were sold, which represents more than 50 percent of the total STB market for that year, according to the latest market study by In-Stat . Cable and digital terrestrial television (DTT) STB shipments each represented slightly over 20 percent of the market, with IPTV only capturing the remaining 7 percent. Asia is the dominant region, in terms of unit shipments, with nearly half of the worldwide total units shipped in the forth quarter of 2009. In terms of revenue, North America continues to be the most dominant region, with over $8 billion in STB sales for 2009. In-Stat's study covers the worldwide market for set-top boxes. This research tracks set top box (STB) unit shipments, revenues and average selling prices (ASPs) on a quarterly basis. The pay-TV operator segmentation includes Cable, Satellite, Telco IPTV, and Digital Terrestrial TV. In-Stat's latest market study found the following: - The ...

While the global recession has dampened growth in new digital set top box (STB) deployments in 2009, the market potential still remains a tremendous opportunity for STB equipment vendors, according the the latest study by In-Stat . From 2001 to 2008, the overall digital set top box market grew from 37 million units in 2001 to nearly 190 million units in 2008. Growth turned mixed across STB markets in 2009, with cable set top box shipments declining, while satellite, IP and digital terrestrial segments continued to see some unit growth. "Looking forward, the transition from Standard Definition (SD) to High Definition (HD) set top boxes will continue to provide STB vendors a solid growth opportunity," says Mike Paxton, In-Stat analyst. "The integration of Personal Video Recording (PVR) capability is also creating growth opportunities." The big unknown factor is still the growth of over-the-top (OTT) Internet video service adoption and the effect on hybrid STB demand, ...

With digital television sets (DTVs) supplanting analog models in much of the world, consumer electronics manufacturers are adding new features -- such as Internet connectivity and wireless HD capability to broaden their appeal, according to the latest market study by In-Stat . "DTVs are competing with computers to be the entertainment hub of the home," says Brian O'Rourke, In-Stat analyst. TV sets with broadband Internet connectivity are already commercially available in the U.S., Europe, and Japan. Models from Hitachi, LG Electronics, Mitsubishi, Panasonic, Samsung, Sharp, and Sony can connect directly to the Internet without a home computer. CES 2010 will likely feature a plethora of new TV models, and associated OTT video services. In-Stat's market study found the following: - 36 percent of digital TV sets sold in 2013 will be network-enabled. - DTV Revenue in Asia-Pacific will see a 6.3 percent Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) from 2008 to 2013, the fastes...

The global transition to digital broadcast television service, and the growing adoption of Internet video by consumers, is creating huge roller-coaster like demand swings for the CE device manufacturers. In-Stat reported that worldwide Digital Terrestrial TV (DTT) Set Top Box (STB) shipments fell by nearly 35 percent in Q2 compared to Q1. The shift was driven primarily by falling shipments in the North American market following the analog broadcast TV shut-off. Plummeting unit shipments in North America were partially offset by growth in the Asian DTT market, which actually grew 50 percent to over 1.2 million units. The satellite set top box market increased unit shipments to 20.3 million units in Q2 2009, making it the largest set top box market among Cable, Satellite, IP and DTT set top boxes. While IPTV set top boxes saw a slight sequential drop in unit shipments from Q1 to Q2, growth in High-definition IPTV set top boxes was strong. The percentage of HD IPTV set top boxes increase...

With the global switch over from analog to digital TV broadcasts, hybrid set-top boxes potentially have a more significant role in the access to entertainment and information services. This is especially apparent in mature high-speed Internet economies where broadband service providers strive towards providing interactive bi-directional television, thereby leading to the growth of IP set-top boxes. According to the latest set-top box (STB) market study by ABI Research, IP STBs will generate a market value above $3 billion by 2014. This analog-digital switchover has also brought about a progressive momentum towards sophisticated box types as well as advanced compression technologies. As ABI Research industry analyst Serene Fong notes, "Shipments of basic boxes across all television platforms have declined and will continue to fall throughout the six-year forecast period. In contrast, shipments of boxes with HD capabilities and MPEG-4 compression technologies -- including HD hybrids...

A consortium of European TV industry leaders announced "Hybrid Broadcast Broadband TV" (HbbTV), a major new pan-European initiative aimed at combining the broadcast and broadband delivery of news, information and entertainment to the end consumer through TVs and set-top boxes with a Web connection. The cross industry consortium includes broadcasters Canal+, France Televisions, and TF1, German research institute Institut für Rundfunktechnik, satellite operator SES ASTRA, as well as the software and media solutions providers ANT and OpenTV. The HbbTV specification was developed by industry leaders to effectively manage the rapidly increasing amount of available content targeted at today's end consumer. It is based on elements of existing standards and web technologies including OIPF (Open IPTV Forum), CEA, DVB and W3C. HbbTV products and services will provide the consumer with a seamless entertainment experience with the combined richness of broadcast and broadband. This e...

The latest global market study by MRG demonstrates how Over-the-Top (OTT) video services may offer new opportunities for Pay-TV providers to expand their reach through TV-centric "open" Internet services. Is this the beginning of the end for walled-garden (closed) Pay-TV services? Well, that depends on your point of view, and perhaps if and when the CE manufacturers can bring new and improved Internet Video-Ready television sets to market. Revenues in 2012 should exceed $11 billion, with Internet Set-top Box (ISTB) penetration (including game consoles) exceeding 57 million. Besides cost containment practices, MRG identified what kinds of OTT video content consumers want (and will pay for), based on a global consumer survey. "The real question isn't whether Pay-TV Service Providers (SPs) should implement OTT, as most analysts already agree (they should)," says MRG Analyst Mike Galli. "The real question is how and with what results, which is why we did a ROI ...

Each of the major set-top box (STB) segments -- including Cable, Satellite, DTT and IPTV -- faces widely different outlooks, according to the latest market study by In-Stat. Satellite, the largest of the STB segments, experienced a 6 percent growth in 2008, bolstered by triple-digit growth in the Asia-Pacific region. Unit growth is likely steady for 2009 and 2010. The cable STB market grew 8 percent in 2008 to nearly 45 million units. However, growth in 2009 looks to turn negative in this mature market. The nascent IPTV STB market grew 55 percent in 2008, but similar growth will not continue. With few new telco TV deployments, unit shipments of IP STBs will experience a marginal increases in 2009 and 2010. Digital terrestrial (DTT) STBs grew at 200 percent in 2008, driven by high-definition (HD) converter boxes supporting the U.S. analog broadcast TV transition to digital. But, these shipments represent an unsustainable upside. Growth will fall back to 23 percent in 2009 and then will ...