Parks Associates supports SUPERCOMM 2009

Parks Associates is supporting SUPERCOMM 2009 on October 21-23, 2009 in Chicago, Illinois.

SUPERCOMM showcases the business and technology solutions you need to maximize your network and offers the applications and services your customers demand.

It's the international showcase for a new industry, a new economy and a new world of broadband communications. In just four days, you'll meet and talk with the visionaries, executives and engineers transforming an industry and changing the way we live our lives.

SUPERCOMM draws on a tradition started over 20 years ago, bringing service providers, network owners, manufacturers, suppliers and related professionals together to exchange ideas and innovations.

For more information, click here.

Best Buy and TiVo Form Alliance

TiVo, the Silicon Valley company that popularized the digital video recorder, and Best Buy, the national electronics chain, are forging a broad partnership.

On Thursday, the companies plan to announce that Best Buy will heavily promote TiVo products in its 1,100 stores in the United States. TiVo will develop a version of its set-top box, to be sold in Best Buy stores, that will let the retailer advertise its products and services to TiVo subscribers on their home televisions


Read More: NY TIMES

Parks Associates forecasts over 640 million broadband households worldwide by 2013

Value-added services, stimulus funds will help increase subscriber numbers --

The demand for high-bandwidth applications will jump in the next few years as the number of households worldwide with broadband will reach close to 650 million by 2013, according to international research firm Parks Associates. The firm’s new report Broadband Services: Global Outlook warns that service providers will have to continue investing in network technologies to accommodate multiple services such as video-on-demand and converging social-networking applications.

Parks Associates reports the number of broadband households worldwide grew by over 18% in 2008 to exceed 400 million. Asia-Pacific is the largest market, accounting for over 160 million subscribers, and it will have over 49% of the global market share by 2013.

In the U.S., the federal government, at the request of the Obama Administration, will soon release billions of dollars from the stimulus package to promote expansion of affordable high-speed Internet services in rural areas, which will open new areas in this country to advanced online services.

Bandwidth will continue to be a focus as the operators re-architect their networks to deliver multiple services over the same infrastructure; however, in such a competitive field, bandwidth alone is not enough to win subscribers. Blended applications, combining services such as online video and customer support, offer operators an opportunity to increase ARPU. In addition, innovative new services will help differentiate service providers, which can then compete on factors beyond pricing or raw bandwidth.

For the full press release, click here.

Parks Associates supports IPTV World Forum North America

Parks Associates is supporting the IPTV World Forum North America from July 20-21, 2009 at the Millennium Broadway Hotel, New York.

The IPTV World Forum was developed as a direct response to the rapid growth in the marketplace, bringing together operators, technology partners and content providers to explore and define the IPTV evolution. More Info

Personalization and unique value of smartphones to push global sales to 310 million units in 2013

Consumer demand leads to almost 20% annual growth between 2008 and 2013--

The consumer appetite for smartphones is skyrocketing and will push annual sales worldwide from 131 million units in 2008 to over 300 million by 2013, according to international market research company Parks Associates.

The firm’s new report Mobile Services: Global Outlook finds consumers are attracted to these converged devices because they combine practical and entertainment applications into a mobile platform, which can then be expanded incrementally with new and unique add-ons and applications like Breadcrumbz from the Google Android Market.

Consumers have a personal connection to their phones. Apps like T-Mobile’s Sherpa will learn from its user’s preferences in order to make personalized, location-based recommendations on restaurants and shops. The latest iPhone release is making a strong case for mobile video, and with a little help from the Apple App Store, users can turn their phone into a lightsaber.

Smartphone users worldwide will top 1.1 billion in 2013, creating a lucrative market for mobile carriers and mobile application developers.

The success of the iPhone, Pre, and Blackberry shows the strength of consumer demand for an intelligent, multifunctional device. The appeal of the smartphone will create significant new revenue streams for carriers and developers, who should strive to create new service bundles that build off this mobile platform with converged video, voice, and data applications.

Parks Associates is launching a new consumer study Mobile Convergence: Platforms, Applications, and Services to explore smartphone users’ service and application usage patterns, handset feature and function requirements, and expectations for new mobile content and service experience.

This study will uncover hidden consumer needs and help carriers, handset manufacturers, and application developers identify and quantify business opportunities in this fast-growing market segment.

Mobile Services: Global Outlook is Parks Associates’ latest industry report on global mobile market intelligence. It provides market trends in global carrier subscriber growth and handset sales and analyzes carriers’ voice and data service strategies.


For the full press release, click here.


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The Wii to offer video downloads in Japan

Sonic Solutions’ Roxio CinemaNow announced today a partnership with Japan’s Fujisoft Inc. to deliver Hollywood movies through the Wii in the Japanese market. Instant-streaming downloads will be available through Fujisoft’s video-on-demand service "Minna no Theater Wii" (Everyone's Theater Wii), which debuted earlier this year in Japan.

Sonic has signed Paramount Pictures as the first major studio to sell new release and catalog downloads through the service.

Consumer demand, technical innovations to push U.S. revenues for Remote Technical Support Services to $2.6 Billion by 2013

Retailers and broadband service providers to drive market for remote tech support to over 10 million U.S. households --

Annual U.S. revenues for remote technical support services will grow to $2.6 billion by 2013, according to a new report from Parks Associates. Digital Home Tech Support: Analysis and Forecasts finds that increased demand and technical innovations will allow retailers, broadband service providers, and third-party providers to grow their customer base and increase revenues across an array of support areas, including PC setup and troubleshooting, home networking setup and support, and PC tune-up services.

On-site and in-facility repair services once dominated consumer technical support. Today, remote support services allow consumers to keep equipment at home while still giving them access to expert assistance. People are already looking for something to solve their digital challenges and are very interested in these offerings.

The creation and use of automated and deep-diagnostic tools are creating greater efficiency and scale. These tools are especially important as retailers and service providers integrate enhanced support services into new products and subscriptions, which will help grow the number of U.S. households with remote support to over 10 million by 2013.

Given this increase in adoption, providers will have to manage service delivery to scale their businesses. In particular, the use of diagnostic tools and automated software will help providers increase profitability and deliver more proactive services that can help boost recurring subscription revenues.

Digital Home Tech Support: Analysis and Forecasts analyzes the market for U.S. consumer technical support services and software solutions, with forecasts and briefings from more than 30 companies.

For the full press release, click here.

Parks Associates supports Americas Com, Brazil

Parks Associates is a media partner for Americas Com from June 30-July 1, 2009 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Known for 12 years as GSM Americas, Americas Com acts as the annual forum for senior decision-makers from every kind of service provider to discuss the exceptional opportunities in this dynamic and growing telecoms market. Our top-flight panel of speakers incorporates 7 CxOs and 25 operator speakers covering the full range of technologies and perspectives: 3G; Mobile Broadband; Fixed-Mobile Convergence; MVNOs and IPTV.

Now in its 13th year, Americas Com is one of the longest-established and most respected annual meeting places for companies seeking to profit from the growth of the telecoms sector in Latin America. More Info