Nearly 25 percent of U.S. broadband households already own at least one connected-TV device, and one-fourth of these have watched a paid movie on demand at least once in the past month, according to Parks Associates analysts, who predict that connected CE devices will be top sellers in this year's holiday shopping season. "Only 38 percent of U.S. broadband households plan to purchase a CE device this year, but it's the connected CE and smartphones that will be the most popular items," says Kurt Scherf, VP and principal analyst, Parks Associates. (In 2009, almost 50 percent of U.S. broadband households planned a CE purchase.) Scherf adds, "Connected devices are the future of content consumption and entertainment in the living room as they capture the broader trends of integration among different silos in consumers' lives. We will continue to follow their sales through 2011 with Connected CE Tracker."
By the end of 2010, more than 40 million U.S. consumers will have a broadband-connected game console, more than 8 million will have a PC-to-TV connection, more than 5 million will have a connected Blu-ray player, and more than 4 million will have a networked digital video player (such as an Apple TV or Roku Digital Video Player). However, even the enthusiasm for these devices does not totally offset the drop in CE buying intentions reported for this holiday shopping season.
"Manufacturers, retailers and technology providers are noting the tight consumer purse strings and continue to roll out the deals," says Tricia Parks, CEO, Parks Associates. "Consumers want deals; that is their trigger as economic conditions have made them more cautious buyers. Market players must stress the value and convenience of Internet-connected devices. It helps that consumers may choose to save the cost of a video membership and eliminate a trip to the store or kiosk."
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