Shift to Streaming Video Services Taking Toll on Set-Top SoC Sales, Says ABI

Video streaming services’ growing popularity will put a dent in the worldwide set-top box video SoC market this year, with revenue forecast to decline 5 percent to $2.4 billion, said a Thursday ABI research report. “Cord-cutters have a wide variety of streaming services and video streaming boxes that don’t require a set-top box from a pay-TV service provider, which is contributing to the decline in set-top box chipset shipments over the past few years,” said analyst Khin Sandi Lynn. The drop in average selling price, along with unit shipments, is challenging STBx IC makers, including Broadcom, MediaTek, MaxLinear and ALi, she said. Future sales will be driven by the transition to Ultra HD set-top boxes and artificial intelligence integration to improve the user experience, but declines will continue through 2023 when revenue is forecast to drop to $2 billion, said the analyst.