Adoption of smart TVs continues to rise in many markets, especially developed regions and China, says IHS. Consumers are increasingly seeking streaming content from online video services. By 2019, IHS predicts that 50% of TV households in Japan, the USA, the UK, France and Germany will own a smart TV.
Smart TV penetration has already reached 50% in Japan – leading the world. This will rise to 63% by 2019. The USA will be at 57%. The UK and Germany lead in Western Europe and are expected to reach 53% in three years’ time, followed by France at 50%. IHS’ Hisakazu Torii says that rising demand for new features, such as UltraHD resolution, HDR hardware and content and access to streaming content supports smart TV demand.
Although China is considered to be an emerging TV market, smart TV penetration is expected to reach 46% by 2019 – higher than any other emerging region. The technology is an ‘essential’ feature in China, says IHS, due to the demand for access to online services. New device manufacturers, such as Alibaba, LeTV and Xiaomi, provides consumers with access to more choices than ever before.
Smart TV adoption will remain low in most emerging markets. This is due to a lack of online video content and insufficient broadband infrastructure to deliver the speeds required for online content. IHS expects smart TV penetration in Brazil and Russia, for instance, to reach 36% by 2019 – and India to reach just 3%.
