TV Makers Moving to Streaming Platforms to Strengthen Ecosystems, Says Parks

More than 70 percent of U.S. broadband households own at least one streaming entertainment product and half own a smart TV, reported Parks Associates Monday. Seventy-seven percent of smart TVs are connected to the internet, it said, up from 62 percent in 2014. Manufacturers have invested in improvements to the app and user experience on smart TVs, resulting in higher connection rates, “which keeps the user within their ecosystem,” allowing opportunities to monetize the user base, said analyst Kristen Hanich. That’s increasingly important as manufacturers and software providers look to extend into subscriptions and ad-supported over-the-top video services. The analyst cited Samsung’s recently announced ad-supported video service, Samsung TV Plus, and said more announcements from TV makers are expected at CES. Renewed focus on app development and user experience is important for reaching Generation Z users whose preference for content consumption is with mobile devices, she said. “Generation Z shows a strong preference for other forms of entertainment over watching TV programming, which will represent a growing challenge to TV makers,” said Hanich. “Overall television ownership is beginning to decline, even as smart TV adoption grows,” she said. Millennials and Gen Z are the largest segment of TV buyers, and their “unique demands on the TV are forcing manufacturers to rethink the role and form factor of the TV set.”