U.S. households using PCs and game consoles to extend online video to the TV

Parks Associates finds consumer interest in Web-on-TV applications is so strong that households are making their own connections via PCs and game consoles. From 2008 to 2009, the number of U.S. households using Web-connected game consoles increased by 64%, and the number connecting a PC to a TV increased by 36%, according to the firm’s latest report Digital Lifestyles: 2010 Outlook.

Over three-fourths of U.S. households with PC-to-TV connections and one-third of Xbox 360 owners are using these connections to stream online video. These households, as they extend online video and other Web experiences to the TV screen, are laying the foundation for future behaviors with connected CE and entertainment services.

Digital Lifestyles: 2010 Outlook examines the rise of Web-connected CE as one part of the many developments in consumer electronics and services. The report provides analysis and forecasts for a variety of digital lifestyle product categories, including broadband Internet, television services, digital content services, and products (home networks and consumer electronics).

For more information, visit http://www.parksassociates.com.

CONNECTIONS™ addresses business strategies and new technologies that leverage consumer interest in TV Everywhere services

Parks Associates reports TV Everywhere services are gaining popularity, with over 40% of U.S. broadband households very positive on these services, which will be a prominent topic at the upcoming CONNECTIONS™: The Digital Living Conference and Showcase.

CONNECTIONS™ includes multiple sessions on New Media and Digital Content:

• TV Everywhere and Online Video
• Mobile Internet and Cloud Services
• Trends in User Interfaces
• TV and Online Video Advertising Metrics
• DRM, Conditional Access, and Payment Models

Other Event Sessions:

Entertainment Platforms & Value-Added Services

• Digital Home Technical Support Services
• Digital Lifestyles
• Service Provider Innovation
• The Service Provider and the Connected Home
• Innovations & Investments: Venture Capitalist Insights

Consumer Electronics

• Design Elements for Connected CE
• Monetizing Connected CE
• The Future of the Set-top Box
• 3DTV
• TV Technology in the New Age of Consumer Buying

Home Systems & Controls

• Residential Energy Management
• Getting Consumers to Care about Home Controls
• Business Models for Energy Management
• Architectures and Implications for the Home Area Network
• Energy Management as a Key Application for Home Controls

For more information, visit www.connectionsus.com or contact sales@parksassociates.com, 972-490-1113.

Addressable, interactive TV advertising revenue will reach $133 million in 2010

Sixty seven percent of all U.S. TV households (HHs) subscribe to a digital TV service. Digital cable and satellite television cumulatively account for over 65% of the pay TV market in the U.S. At the end of 2008, there were approximately 2.9 million Telco/IPTV subscribers. Parks Associates estimates addressable, interactive TV advertising revenue will reach $133 million in 2010. By 2014, U.S. addressable, interactive TV advertising revenue will reach approximately $4.3 billion.

Register today for the webcast on March 25 and learn more about advanced TV advertising.

Google Said to Work on TV With Intel, Sony, Logitech

Google is working to bring Web software to televisions through a partnership with Intel, Sony, and Logitech , according to a recent BusinessWeek article.

Moving beyond the Internet search engine business, Google is now challenging companies like Yahoo, TiVo, Rovi, and Microsoft in delivering the Internet to TVs.

Parks Associates VP of Research, Kurt Scherf is quoted in the article, “it’s a sign of the legitimacy of Internet connectivity moving well beyond the PC and mobile spaces, which Google has tackled already. It completes the third leg of the stool.”

More than one-quarter of TVs purchased by U.S. consumers in January already are capable of linking to the Web through a Wi- Fi or Ethernet connection, according to another research company.

Web-enabled TVs currently on the market allow users to watch YouTube videos, view online photo albums, play games and stream movies from Netflix Inc.

To read the full article, click here.

Number of smartphone users to quadruple, exceeding 1 billion worldwide by 2014

The demand for smartphones is creating a demographic shift among users, who will exceed 1 billion worldwide by 2014, stimulating demand for more entry-level models that offer mainstream solutions such as mobile email and social networking applications, according to Parks Associates’ Smartphone: King of Convergence.

This new report includes consumer data from Parks Associates’ primary study Mobile Convergence: Platforms, Applications, and Services. This consumer survey finds only 30% of current smartphone users are the stereotypical young and tech-savvy aficionados.

The other user segments exhibit more mainstream demographic attributes and more divergent usage patterns. One such segment, dubbed “pragmatists,” consists of budget-conscious, middle-aged users who prefer mobile email service over Internet access. Another group is keen on the smartphone’s communication features, ranging from mobile Internet to social network access.

Smartphone: King of Convergence tracks smartphone sales and market shares and analyzes carrier strategies, new mobile applications and services, and mobile technology trends. Mobile Convergence: Platforms, Applications, and Services is a survey of U.S. mobile consumers about ownership and attitudes regarding mobile devices and services.

For more information, visit http://www.parksassociates.com/mobile.

3D Gaming Summit, Parks is supporting

Parks Associates is supporting the 3D Gaming Summit 2010 on April 21-22 in Universal City, California.

The first ever 3D Gaming Summit will attract the brightest minds in the gaming industry to define the market opportunity for 3D stereoscopic gaming and entertainment. Delivering two days of packed in-depth discussions, the summit will help steer your strategy to capitalize on the next biggest thing in gaming! More Info

Advertising dollars shifting from traditional formats to addressable advertising

Ad budgets and consumer video viewing are shifting to the Internet, and emerging digital media platforms are threatening the traditional television advertising business. In 2010, 40% of ad or media agency buyers will shift 11 to 15% of total traditional or cable TV budgets to addressable advertising campaigns while 16% will move more than 20% of total TV ad budgets.

Register today for the webcast on March 25 and learn more about changes in the TV advertising industry.

Google TV

The New York Times is reporting that Google, Intel, and Sony are at work together on a Web television for both set-top boxes and connected TVs. Whether it's true or not, the three companies would appear to be good partners:

• Google has an interest in extending its search and advertising placement expertise to the TV screen, as evidenced by its tests with DISH Network;
• Intel faces challenges in convincing consumer electronics companies to use their Atom processors instead of existing suppliers; and
• Sony is trying to revive its brand.

What is very interesting about Google's play here is what impact this might bring to television and online video advertising. To date, we haven't seen much success with online video advertising, and the model for consumer electronics companies in delivering Web-connected products is to work with content agregators (Netflix, Amazon, CinemaNow) and get a small share of the revenue generated from transactional-based VoD orders. So far, the advertising slice of the pie has been so small that it really isn't even a discussion point for revenue sharing. With Google involved, I wonder if they're going to sweeten the pot for CE manufacturers to entice them to leave Yahoo!, DivX, Rovi, IBM, or any of the other Web-on-TV solutions providers.

Digital Living Conference & Showcase features keynotes from Sony Pictures, Samsung, Sony Electronics

Parks Associates announced the preliminary agenda for CONNECTIONS™: The Digital Living Conference and Showcase, which will address the future of digital entertainment and connected CE with keynotes from Sony and Samsung. In addition to the focus on digital content and new service offerings for consumers, the three-day event will feature research presentations and speaker panels on support services, DRM, energy management and controls, advertising, and mobile applications and services.

CONNECTIONS™, in its 14th year, will take place June 8-10 at the Santa Clara Convention Center and is the premier event for research and analysis on connected home technologies and digital living solutions. CONNECTIONS™ attracts over 600 executives in the connected home industries and is the only event that addresses developments within each industry sector while also focusing on the impact and opportunities for convergence across industries.

Keynotes include:

· Scott Birnbaum, Vice President, Samsung LCD Group

· Mitch Singer, CTO, Sony Pictures Entertainment; President, DECE

For more information, visit www.connectionsus.com.

3DTV's: Early answers to some questions

The Dallas Morning News did a nice write-up last week on 3DTVs that coincided with the launch of both Panasonic and Samsung's products at retail. The article provided what I thought was a good perspective on whether the average consumer should run out and buy a 3DTV set:

"Unless you're rich and impatient, you might want to hold off for a year or two. The first batch of 3-D TVs is more expensive than standard HD sets, and analysts expect the prices for 3-D sets to drop dramatically over the next few years. Also, it will be at least a year before 3-D Blu-ray movies and TV channels are widely available. And there's a chance the technology will flop and makers will lose interest."

Overall, I think that this is pretty good advice, and I was wondering just how strong the demand would be for 3DTV sets, as I referenced in a blog last week. News from Panasonic, however, would indicate that early results were quite positive. Now, if only these consumers will be okay with waiting for the 3D release of "Avatar," on Blu-ray, which isn't supposed to happen until sometime next year.

So, there's early market demand, but one other question that I've had is whether the proprietary nature of the 3D displays themselves would present a hurdle to sales. This is why the announcement by XspanD about the release of "universal" 3D glasses is good news. The company notes that they are getting requests from both manufacturers and retailers to have a universal active pair of glasses.

CONNECTIONS Europe features Technicolor keynote & executives from ADB, HbbTV, IBM, NDS, Omniphone, OpenTV and more

The speakers for CONNECTIONS™ Europe Summit: Monetizing Connectivity and User Experiences, announced today by Parks Associates, offer unique executive insight into business strategies for digital content, value-added services, connected CE, and advanced video devices and services. International research firm Parks Associates will host the Summit on April 27, 2010, at the Mövenpick Hotel in Amsterdam.

Benoit Joly, Vice-President, Home Network & Applications, Technicolor, will present the opening keynote. Other speakers:

-- Jonathan Beavon, Director, Segment Marketing, NDS

-- Paul Bristow, VP Strategy, Middleware & Consumer Experience, ADB (Advanced Digital Broadcast)
-- Ronald Brockmann, Managing Director, Europe, ActiveVideo Networks
-- Rob van den Dam, Global Telecom Sector leader IBV, IBM
-- Klaus Illgner-Fehns, Managing Director, HbbTV
-- Trond Neergaard, Founder and Managing Partner, Cloudberry Associates
-- Steve Oetegenn, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer, Verimatrix
-- Rolf Uwe Placzek, CEO, Acetrax
-- Kurt Scherf, VP, Principal Analyst, Parks Associates
-- Stuart Sikes, President, Parks Associates
-- Andrew Wajs, CTO, Irdeto
-- Olivier Wellmann, VP, Product Management, OpenTV
-- Speaker TBA, Omnifone

For information or to register, visit http://www.connectionseurope.com.

Medical Records, next tech goldmine

According to a recent CNNMoney.com article, the next technical goldmine is medical records.

There are an estimated 300 to 400 companies in the United States peddling electronic medical records (EMR) systems to the nation's hospitals, medical clinics and solo practitioners. While some, such as GE Healthcare and NextGen Healthcare Information Systems, are part of corporate behemoths, the vast majority are small, privately held firms like eClinicalWorks.

While large firms such as Allscripts-Misys Healthcare Solutions Inc. and NextGen Healthcare remain huge presences, industry observers say that the electronic medical records field is as open to smaller challengers as it has ever been.

One big factor working in the small companies' favor: The majority of doctors' offices that have yet to adopt electronic records are small businesses themselves. While more than half of medical practices employing 50 or more doctors are using EMR systems, less than 10% of practices made up of three physicians or fewer can say the same, according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2008.

To read the full article, click here.

Free Tech Support Webcast: Enhancing Remote Customer and Technical Support

Register today for the Parks Associates March 18th webcast, Enhancing Remote Customer and Technical Support, sponsored by PlumChoice and support.com. Kurt Scherf, VP, Principal Analyst, Parks Associates, will discuss the evolution of the support market - including consumer electronics, home computer and networking configuration, and a variety of maintenance, diagnostics, and troubleshooting services.

Parks Associates estimates that revenues for remote tech support services have doubled in the last year, with revenues in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

As consumers demonstrate a willingness to pay for premium remote technical support services, what are the opportunities and challenges for companies developing and expanding customer care and remote technical support services?

How does the industry move from reactive services to developing a perspective on holistic customer care?

Join Parks Associates, PlumChoice, and support.com for this special Webcast on the evolution of the support market.

Register Now

PC-on-TV: The Cable Industry's Less-is-More Mantra

I had blogged a couple of weeks ago about Cablevision's strategy of allowing subscribers to access PC content on their TVs without deploying new set-top boxes, media adapters, etc. I should also mention that another company - IPVN - also has a solution called "Send To TV."

This is a nifty idea - anything that can eliminate having to install digital media adapters is a good thing.

Solutions such as what Cablevision and IPVN resonate with consumers. In our All Eyes on Video study, we found that 35% and 27% of consumers find concepts such as watching online video at their TV and playing music stored on a home computer at the TV highly appealing, respectively.

Perspectives on 3DTV

This week has turned out to be 3DTV launch week, with major announcements from Panasonic and Best Buy, Samsung, Sony, LG, and others. With that, I've fielded some questions from the press that I thought I'd also post here. Here are some of the common questions we're getting, along with our analysis.

What should we expect in terms of 3DTV displays as a percentage of all HDTV displays?
In this article, Samsung notes that 3-4 million of the expected 35 million TVs sold in North America will be 3D, whereas Sony hopes for 10% in its next fiscal year.

We've been pretty cautious about 3DTV (and you'll hear why in the next comments), and even the Consumer Electronics Association, which had originally projected four million sales in 2010 has backed off that and is now projecting about one million units.

In a few years, I do think that 3DTV capabilities will be integrated into TV sets, much as we expect Web connectivity to be a part of most displays. If you want to compare the potential growth path for 3DTV to Web-connected TVs, in 2010, we forecast that 24% of HDTV sales will be Web-capable, and this will grow to 80% by 2014. So, I do think that you’ll see the 3DTV integration occur. Perhaps it won’t be quite as strong as 80% in five years, but it could be significant. I heard other CE manufacturers at CES indicate that 30-40% of their displays may be 3D capable in five years, so they’re being more conservative.

Is there an immediate interest in customers to buy 3D TVs, or will it take a while to trickle into living rooms? How long?
First, awareness of 3DTVs is low. Only about 10% of consumers are highly aware of a 3DTV, compared to 19% highly familiar with the concept of a Web-connected TV. I do think that it will take awhile to trickle into living rooms, as consumers who just went on a huge spree in the last 4-5 years to put the HDTV in the living room are going to be hesitant to quickly replace that set.

What challenges may face 3D TVs getting to living rooms? (Premium pricing, lack of content?)
There are questions about how expensive the glasses will be (we don’t see the quality in auto-stereoscopic sets improving to the point of seeing them in living rooms in the next few years), whether the glasses themselves will be proprietary to each manufacturer, pricing, and lack of content as key inhibitors at this point.

3D has seen some ups and downs before it made an impact on movie screens? Will it face as many of the same challenges as it trickles down to TVs?
I think content is going to fuel the growth, so getting lots of high-quality 3D programming is going to be key. I don’t think that re-rendering 2D to 3D is going to cut it. I saw the demos at CES, and I wasn’t all that impressed. Nearly 40% of consumers indicate that they would be interested in seeing movies in 3D in their living room, so Hollywood is going to have to be putting out lots of good content. About a quarter of consumers indicate that they would enjoy sports in 3D. That presents the challenge of producing live sports in a 3D format. You’re going to need new cameras, new production equipment, and producers will have to re-think how to shoot sports to make this compelling. So, there are definitely some production challenges.

I think one thing to keep in mind is that it took HDTVs about 10 years to get to where we are now (more than 50% penetration). I think 3DTV has even more potential pitfalls, so I would think pretty conservatively about how quickly we’re going to see this grow.

U.S. Electronic Systems Contractors optimistic about business prospects in 2010

On average, U.S. home systems integrators, who have had revenues fall for the past two years, expect sales to pick up by more than 9% in 2010 over 2009, according to Home Systems: Channel and Consumer Monitor.

This report includes results of a fourth-quarter 2009 survey of integrators installing home controls, entertainment systems, and energy management solutions, conducted as a joint effort from international research firm Parks Associates and the Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association (CEDIA).

Home Systems: Channel and Consumer Monitor reports that integrators continue to generate two-thirds of their revenue from A/V systems but many integrators plan to diversity in 2010 by adding lighting controls and solar panels to their 2010 offerings. Approximately 40% of integrators plan to begin installing photovoltaic solar panels, and another 38% are seeking more information on this product category to determine its viability. In addition, the trend toward more retrofit projects, which accounted for 63% of 2009 revenues, will continue.

Visit www.parksassociates.com for more information on Home Systems: Channel and Consumer Monitor.

Who's going to control search and discovery on the connected TV?

With The Wall Street Journal today reporting a Google test of a service to allow consumers to search for both broadcast and broadband content, and TiVo's announcement from last week regarding TiVo® Premiere and TiVo® Premiere XL box experiences, I do think that the battle for TV-based search, discovery, and recommendations is on in full-force. From Rovi, to DivX, and others, this is going to be a really hot space to watch.

Technicolor mp3HD format adopted by Samsung

Technicolor today announced that its mp3HD format, introduced in 2009, is featured in the Samsung “IceTouch,” the company’s first mp3HD portable player, which was recently unveiled at CES 2010.

The mp3HD format offers lossless audio compression as well as compatibility with the widely-used mp3 standard. mp3HD enables content creators, the music industry and consumers to benefit from the ultimate audio quality experience with the same ease of use as the mp3 format.

For the full press release, click here.

Parks Associates hosting Advances in Television Advertising Webcast

Parks Associates is hosting a Advances in Television Advertising on Thursday, March 25th at 1 PM Central.

Major pay TV service providers have identified advanced TV advertising as a key revenue opportunity for 2010 and beyond. Ad budgets and consumer video viewing are shifting to the Internet, and emerging digital media platforms are threatening the traditional television advertising business. Even so, cable TV operators continue to ramp up their investment in advanced advertising solutions as a preemptive move to sustain ad revenues in the short term. In the long term, the investment serves to grow the advertising business segment.

This webcast features analysis and forecasts from Parks Associates examining the following questions:

- What key players and technologies will further industry growth?
- Will pay TV providers successfully integrate advanced TV advertising into their existing infrastructures?
- What is the main focus of Canoe Ventures?
- What are the existing and proposed business and pricing models?

For more information, visit
www.parksassociates.com/events/webcasts.htm

Cable Europe Not Afraid of Over-the-Top

Today the European cable industry spent the afternoon at its Cable Congress in Brussels discussing the impact of OTT content. Through a number of spokespeople, the message was clear: cable is ready and anxious to play a role in over-the-top. Some key points include the following:

Set top box maker ADB reminded the audience that the brand in the hand is the brand that wins. That is, cable companies must provide remote controls which support the set top boxes that support the features most desired by consumers. As soon as consumers move to alternative set top boxes, the cable provider loses the opportunity to provide the superior experience to the consumer.

Telenet’s EVP of Residential Marketing said that her company’s market leadership has enabled the company to test, for some months, a number of over-the-top interfaces in order to be ready before any serious competition provides a superior alternative.

UPC’s VP of Strategy implored the cable industry to work together more closely and suggested that providing a better interface to real time web access as well as a better VoD library will be the keys to accommodating over-the-top experiences.

Kabel Deutschland’s CCO welcomed over the top content as he said access to YouTube and other web portals has fueled tremendous broadband subscriber growth in Germany. When asked if YouTube should be sharing revenues with cable, Virgin Media’s CEO stated that the company has a variety of business models attached to different types of content and that many revenue opportunities will exist within the cable ecosystem.

YouTube EMEA's Director of Partnerships offered that the company was engaging in a number of revenue sharing models with broadcasters and that we will see more branding as a part of YouTube, suggesting that the relationship between aggregator and pipe may become increasingly cooperative.

Who's going to control the "Digital Locker"?

We've been pleased to have Mitch Singer from Sony Pictures and the Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem (DECE) coalition speak at our recent CONNECTIONS events and speak about the potential of "digital locker" services. Roughly defined, these would be services that could authenticate and manage a wide variety of user-owned content in a virtual environment. One key element of the digital locker is widely agreed-upon digital rights management protocols, where multiple connected devices across a wide array of platforms can connect to content coming from multiple sources. The other key is the virtual storage and management of content that will become more important as the number of Web-connected media players (smartphones, tablets, TVs, Blu-ray players, etc.) proliferate.

The DECE is not alone in pursuing the development of digital locker solutions. The Walt Disney Company is promoting Keychest, which Disney CEO Robert Iger describes as a way to allow a consumer to purchase content and play it back on multiple platforms without having to worry about interoperability.

Now, there is the report from CNET that Apple is in discussions with the studios to enable iTunes users to store their content on the company's servers. Apple has told the studios that under the plan, iTunes users will access video from various Internet-connected devices.

We've taken an early look at consumer acceptance of a digital locker type of service, and have found that 30% find the idea highly appealing. I think that the trust issue is going to be more of a problem with the studios than the consumer!

So, about that "uber-box"...

While the European cable industry is enjoying itself in Brussels at the Cable Congress 2010, they also look to be making us look pretty prescient, too (so, thanks for the chocolates and the validation). Just two days ago, I had mused about whether we're going to see the "uber-box" emerge for the cable guys - this is the single point of convergence for data and video services and would replace the separate set-top box and residential gateway.

Liberty Global is apparently ready to roll with such a converged box. Liberty Global plans to deploy an IP-based home gateway some time this year, CEO Mike Fries told delegates at the Cable Congress in Brussels yesterday. Fries said the cost of such equipment had reduced significantly over the last year, so that the cable operator could now deploy a gateway for the same price it would formerly pay for an HD DVR. The planned gateway will be a six-tuner device with built-in wireless connectivity.

Cable Europe Parties Like its 1999

Remember the lavish, luxurious corporate functions frequently hosted by technology companies in the roaring 90’s? Tonight the European cable industry celebrated a solid year of nearly 10% growth (at least Telenet enjoyed nearly 10% growth) in an otherwise lackluster economy. The party, hosted by Telenet for delegates of the European Cable Congress in Brussels, felt more like a coming out party. The IT industry’s fascination with IPTV has finally quieted as IPTV growth has slowed over the past year and cable, evidently, has decided it is time to come out and celebrate. Perhaps the byline of the event should have been “the demise of the cable industry in Europe has been greatly exaggerated.” Telenet spared no expense, renting out the Belgian Bourse, an elegant Palladian style building – quite possibly symbolic of the solid returns the company is providing its shareholders. In cocktail conversation, a member of the Cable Europe trade association stated that ICT has become one of the most significant contributors to the EUs GDP. That would explain the guest appearance of Belgium’s Prime Minister, Yves Leterme.

The distinguished guests at the event included one of the FCC’s lead economists working on the U.S. Broadband Plan which will be presented to Congress this month. Other notables were the Multimedia over Coax Alliance (MoCA) team, the sales team of the steadily growing digital rights company Irdeto, some familiar faces from OpenTV, Broadcom, management of Liberty Global and subsidiary UPC as well as the majority of European cable providers.

To further celebrate not only cable-pride but also Belgian-pride, Telenet served not only the gamut of Belgian champagnes and beers, but trotted out cuisine from two of the country’s most famous chefs, top chocolatier, and award winning latte artist (he creates images in the milk floating atop your espresso). Later in the evening the party featured fashion models sporting outfits from Belgium’s top clothing designers, and finally the pulsating sounds of Belgium’s top DJ.

When IPTV World Forum opens in London on the 23^rd of this month, will we see the industry hosting such a bold celebration of success?

Parks Associates predicts expanded adoption for Personal Health Records due to $19 billion government incentive

The U.S. government’s recent EMR (electronic medical records) incentive will trickle down to benefit personal health record (PHR) providers over the next few years, raising awareness among consumers and pushing total number of PHR users over 100 million by 2014, according to Electronic Health Records: Information Center of Connected Care.

This new industry report from international research firm Parks Associates notes that the $19 billion financial incentive from the U.S. federal government designed to promote EMR adoption includes a “meaningful use” requirement. PHR, though not fully spelled out, is implied in one of the requirements.

Parks Associates defines PHRs as software and applications designed to enable consumers to access and store personal health and wellness information for self-care or for sharing with doctors or designated recipients.

Electronic Health Records: Information Center of Connected Care analyzes adoption of EMR and PHR among providers and consumers and offers insights on usage models, government incentives, pilot programs, and technology trends.

Apple TV sales only up 35%

Wow - probably the strongest evidence to date that consumers are strongly resisisting the addition of more set-top boxes in their homes comes from Apple's COO Tim Cook. As quoted in the Silicon Alley Insider, Cook noted that Apple TV is in a market that's very small. He said that Apple TV sales in the last quarter increased by by 35% in a unit basis year-over-year.

Convergence of the set-top box and RG?

We've been speculating for some time now about whether we are going to see the convergence between set-top box and RG functionality. In reports such as Set-top Boxes: Outlook and Connected Home: Global Outlook, we interviewed companies from both the service provider and the CPE side to identify the key catalysts and timing for the "all-in-one" box that
incorporates all data, communications, and entertainment access would impact their services and costs. Drivers for such deployments are the cable industry’s move away from all MPEG video delivery to IP and cost-savings – the one-box unit might allow for lower-cost or even no set-top boxes to be deployed. Today, the economic model for such deployments is only viable for households having three or more set-top boxes, only 17% of all U.S. digital cable households (14% of all broadband households).

Even as deployed separately, there are many synergies that the video-centric set-top box and the data-centric RG can leverage. It's probably one reason why a company such as Pace plc is purchasing Bewan, a residential gateway developer. Pace sees the acquisition as a way to enhance the converged services of operators and to allow entry into Middle Eastern and North African markets.

Parks Associates supports Digital Strategies Conference

Parks Associates is supporting the Digital Strategies Conference on March 10th in Toronto, Canada.

Digital Strategies Conference is a one day event focused on what you need to know to effectively market your products and services in the Digital Age. This is an event that you can't afford to miss.