TMCnet News

Smart TVs to dominate the global television market by 2016 says Gartner [India Business] [Times of India]
[December 20, 2012]

Smart TVs to dominate the global television market by 2016 says Gartner [India Business] [Times of India]


(Times of India Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) MUMBAI: In a growing trend in the television market as much as 85% of all flat-panel TVs produced in 2016 will be smart TVs, according to technology research firm Gartner. Worldwide unit production of flat-panel smart TVs will grow from 69 million in 2012 to 198 million in the next four years even as the worldwide unit production of smart TVs in 2013 is expected to reach 108 million.



Analysts said smart TVs alone won't spur demand in the market. TV manufacturers will have to differentiate their offerings for consumers to choose their brand over others.

"In the end, the choice may be all about the extra content that one TV brand offers over another," said Paul O'Donovan, principal research analyst at Gartner. "It is critical for the TV industry during this global economic downturn and decline in consumer confidence levels, to sustain sales and maintain or grow market share - especially in emerging markets. This is difficult when demand has slowed, so the extra functionality offered by smart TVs becomes the product differentiator - if prices are already competitive and all other variables are equal between brands," the analysts said.


Gartner defines a typical smart TV as having the ability to search the Internet for video content and then play that content back. It may or may not include a browser, but there is the functionality to add apps from an app store operated either by the TV manufacturer or by a third party. The functionality of the smart TV can include an interactive capability with live TV broadcasts, as well as a range of connectivity options to other consumer devices such as smartphones, tablets or PCs.

Internet-connected smart TVs will be able to access a wide variety of content from the Internet over a broadband connection, and will receive traditional TV broadcasts via terrestrial transmissions or via satellite, cable or an Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) set-top box.

(c) 2012 Bennett, Coleman & Company Limited

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]