Roku, Amazon Own 69% of Flattening Streaming Media Player Market, Says Parks

The streaming media player market has flattened, up a point from 2018, with penetration in 39 percent of U.S. broadband households, reported Parks Associates Wednesday. Purchase intentions are higher for 2019 than in previous years, Parks said. Connected device makers may need to shift focus from hardware sales to service and advertising revenue as ownership reaches saturation, said the researcher. “Streaming media has reshaped how US consumers interact with entertainment content and services, so as the market matures, sales increasingly come at another vendor’s expense,” said analyst Kristen Hanich. Roku (39 percent) and Amazon (30 percent) are “clear market leaders” of the installed base of streaming media players, benefiting from broad product portfolios with lower price points, she said. Roku and Fire TV adoption grows at the expense of Chromecast and Apple TV, said fellow analyst Craig Leslie.