NPD: 238 Million Internet-Connected TV Devices by 2019
20 Dec, 2016 By: Erik GruenwedelWeb-enabled TV devices continue to attract mainstream appeal. More than 238 million installed devices are expected to be connected to the Internet and able to deliver apps to TVs, representing 59% growth from 2015 to 2019, according to new data from The NPD Group.
Connected TVs (a.k.a. Smart TV) are projected to drive 45% of the growth over the coming four years, while less-expensive, content-heavy streaming media players — such as Roku, Chromecast, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV — are projected to drive 35% growth.
Connectivity is projected to increase from 70% in 2015 to 80% of installed units by the end of 2019, driven primarily by hardware prompting connectivity, an increase in quality app programming from TV networks, and improvements to user interfaces.
“This shift will inevitably result in diminished usage for some [streaming] devices,” John Buffone, executive director, industry analyst, NPD, said in a statement.
Starting this year through 2019, NPD expects streaming media devices will be found in more homes than any other connected TV device. With multiple options available, the research group expects 43% of U.S. Internet homes will own at least one streaming media player by the end of 2019.
Roku and Chromecast have expanded beyond proprietary streaming media players offering operating systems to more than 10 TV manufacturers as opposed to the companies managing their own app eco-system.
“The integration of streaming media player operating systems into TVs points to the beginning of a consolidation of operating systems that app developers will need to focus on in order to reach their audience,” said Buffone.