Research from The Diffusion Group earlier this year showed internet-connected TVs are now in three-quarters of U.S. broadband households, and NPD Connected Intelligence predicted the number of installed devices capable of delivering apps to TVs will hit 238 million by the close of 2019. So it should come as no surprise that new data from Parks Associates shows those devices are changing the way consumers are using their televisions.
Here’s the rundown: Parks finds more than half of U.S. broadband households now watch internet video on a television screen, while less than a quarter don’t watch any video content on a TV set at all. The firm also says 88 percent of computer-based viewing is from non-linear sources, while nearly three quarters (72 percent) of non-pay-TV customers subscribe to an OTT video service as their primary source of content. The market leader there is Netflix, with just under half (49 percent) of U.S. broadband households reporting they have a subscription to that service.
“For years, the television has been the stronghold for the traditional TV industry,” Parks Associates Senior Research Director Brett Sappington comments. “Today, more televisions are connected to the internet than ever, either directly or through connected devices like game consoles or streaming media players, such as Roku or Apple TV. The fact that one-half of broadband households watch internet video on a television shows that we are well past a tipping point. The market has fundamentally changed.”
