Connected Home Devices

No other vendor offers the combination of timely, consistent and accurate tracking of 22 different product categories spanning audio, video and computing,

December 22, 2010 16:12 dmercer
We don’t do this very often folks, but as a seasonal gift we have made our 2011 Digital Home Predictions report available to everyone, whether a Strategy Analytics client or not. You can download the full report here. A lot of the talk at the moment is about Google’s troubles with its TV offer: there will be little to see at CES after all, much to the annoyance of Google’s many partners no doubt. But this setback should not be seen as a a sign of general malaise in the connected TV industry: Apple has just reported that its TV solution is finally gaining some traction, and we expect continued progress from other key players in the rollout of internet TV to the big screen during 2011. We may even see Facebook moving into this space. Headline number of the year will be tablet revenues, which we predict will exceed netbooks. We also think Apple needs to revamp iTunes to take account of the connected device era, and Nintendo may have to take the plunge and launch the successor to the Wii. We’ll see further innovations in the TV control arena, with touchscreens, phone apps and motion control all featuring more widely. But 3DTV is likely to see only slow progress: sure, people will be buying 3D-enabled sets, but less than 20% will be watching 3D content on them. And one more stat to whet your appetite: more than one billion people worldwide will be using social networks for the first time during 2011. And since you are one of them, please go ahead and read the full report, and any comments and feedback are always appreciated. Best wishes for a peaceful holiday season. David Mercer Client Reading: Profiling the Connected Media Consumer - UK Add to Technorati Favorites

February 24, 2009 20:02 dmercer
Apple’s iTunes is by far the dominant player today in digital downloads, not just for music but increasingly for video and other media. It’s widely accepted that the tight integration of the iTunes service with Apple’s range of digital media devices has been critical to the company’s market leadership. But Strategy Analytics research suggests that even with its current dominance, Apple cannot afford to rest on its laurels. In our UK broadband user survey, people are still more likely to choose Amazon as the place to visit for digital media downloads. Even for digital music, 26% of broadband users say they would prefer Amazon to iTunes. The gap is wider in video (Amazon 16%, iTunes, 11%) and games (Amazon 16%, iTunes 5%). These findings demonstrate that leadership in the early stages of a market do not guarantee long term dominance. Amazon is clearly a much more powerful retailer than Apple and if it executes successfully in its online media strategy it should become a serious challenger for the number one position. Twitter: twitter.com/dmercer15 Client Reading: Digital Media Survey: United Kingdom - Country Profile Add to Technorati Favorites submit to reddit