Light Reading

But a refresh would come at a good time, arriving on scene as consumer adoption of certain smart home products continues to climb. According to Parks Associates, 49% of US broadband households own a smart speaker or smart display, "driving voice to the forefront of the connected home consumer experience."

From the article "Apple pursuing Apple TV-HomePod combo – report" by Jeff Baumgartner.

That result tracks with other recent research indicating Americans are moving up to higher-speed data tiers. In its recent Quantified Customer study, Parks Associates estimated that 24% of US broadband households are likely to upgrade their Internet service over the next six months.

From the article "Survey: Consumers went big on Internet, video, voice purchases in 2020" by Karen Brown. 

The 90-minute session will consist of a research presentation, fireside chat and panel discussion. So far, the speaking roster includes: Steve Nason, director of research at Parks Associates; Mitchell Weinraub, director of product management at Dish Network's Sling TV/AirTV operations; Jim DeChant, VP of technology at News-Press & Gazette Broadcasting; and Rob Holmes, VP of programming at Roku. More speakers are expected to join as well.

From the article "Light Reading preps ...read more

Turning the new Chromecast into a fully fledged Android TV device could also be an important retail addition as Google attempts to cut into the streaming platform lead of Roku (36.9 million active accounts at the end of 2019) and Amazon's Fire TV (about 40 million active users). According to a Parks Associates study from the fall of 2019, Chromecast made up just 11% of the US media streaming device market, down from 21% three years earlier.

From the article "Google developin ...read more

New research from Parks Associates, Technology Market Assessment: 5G Network Services, finds that more than 33% of US broadband households cite some level of familiarity with 5G and over 40% of US broadband households are interested in 5G.

Technology Market Assessment: 5G Network Services examines several aspects of 5G, including the condition of the mobile market, consumer sentiments toward 5G services and products, service availability, use cases, and competition. It explo ...read more

A free trial for Apple TV+ would follow a typical game plan used by most SVoD services to get people in the door and take a look around. About 58% of US broadband homes that trial an OTT video subscription service convert to paying subscribers, according to Parks Associates.

Apple teased Apple TV+ in March, announcing plans to offer the service on devices outside its own ecosystem that will feature a slate of original series and documentaries, with big names such as Steven S ...read more

Altice USA is also jumping into this game as consumer adoption of smart speakers is on the rise. According to Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) data, the US installed base for smart speaker products climbed to 66 million at the end of 2018, up from 37 million in the prior year, and is led by Amazon. Parks Associates, meanwhile, predicts that smart speakers with voice assistants will reach 47% of US broadband households by 2022. 

From the article "Altice USA Adds ...read more

"Piracy is a complex issue that cannot be addressed with a single solution or by targeting a single use case," said Brett Sappington, senior research director and principal analyst at Parks Associates in a statement. "Most pirates also subscribe to at least one OTT service. They are not simply thieves looking to steal content but are video enthusiasts who engage with many different services. OTT services could better reach these consumers through ad-based content, which also ali ...read more