"Nontraditional" Devices Will Lead Growth of TV Receiver Market, According to ABI Research.

NEW YORK -- Of the more than 360 million digital terrestrial television (DTT) receivers expected to ship in 2013, about a quarter will be found in "nontraditional" consumer electronics devices - that is, in portable DVD players and media players, and in other fixed consumer electronics equipment such as PC TV tuners, rather than in standard TVs and set-top boxes.

"Nontraditional devices will form a fast-growing segment of the market for silicon receivers of digital terrestrial video," says principal analyst Steve Wilson of ABI Research. "The small footprint, low power, and low cost of silicon solutions will extend the opportunity for delivering digital broadcast television to consumers. The market will expand from traditional TV and STB applications to other fixed and portable consumer electronics devices."

The global DTT market's development patterns will be influenced by regional adoption of broadcast standards. Most industrialized countries have already settled on one of several available standards for fixed and mobile digital video broadcast, with variants on DVB leading the charge, and silicon vendors are starting to produce chipsets targeting specific markets and applications. The exception so far is North America, which has not yet adopted a mobile broadcast video standard, although the ATSC committee has announced plans to develop one.

Will availability of broadcast reception drive sales of portable video receivers? Or vice-versa, is the presence of a large user-base of such devices a prerequisite to success of broadcast-to-portable?

"Both," says Wilson. "In the case of portable DVD player market, the inclusion of a tuner will significantly enhance the usefulness of the device and its appeal, without adding very much to its cost. Solid-state portable media players will quite likely see significant market share increase on their own, without the ability to receive broadcast video, but its inclusion will be an added feature allowing vendors to differentiate their devices from their competitors'. The same applies to portable TVs: their improved performance with digital tuners may help increase the size of that market."

A new ABI Research report, "Digital Terrestrial Silicon Receivers," (http://www.abiresearch.com/products/market_research/Digital_ Terrestrial_Silicon_Receivers), focuses on the terrestrial receivers and standards that will impact consumer electronics devices (with the exception of mobile phone handsets) and explores current market challenges. It includes a details of DTT component suppliers, and forecasts world markets for the inclusion of DTT receivers in consumer products to 2013. This study is part of ABI Research's Consumer Electronics Research Service (http://www.abiresearch.com/products/service/Consumer_Electronics_ Research_Service).

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Founded in 1990 and headquartered in New York, ABI Research maintains global operations supporting annual research programs, intelligence services and market reports in broadband and multimedia, RFID & contactless, M2M, wireless connectivity, mobile wireless, transportation, and emerging technologies. For information visit www.abiresearch.com, or call +1.516.624.2500.