In The News

In A Connected World, Why Aren't Smart TVs Very Clever?

January 10, 2016

Turns out that smart TVs can be, well, pretty dumb. Even moderately priced sets can now connect to the Internet and run Netflix and other apps -- that's the "smart" part. Yet many people are ignoring the built-in features and turning to Apple TV, Roku and other stand-alone streaming devices that often do a better job.

In an August report, the NPD Group estimates that roughly a third of smart TVs in the U.S. weren't actually connected to the Internet. That's down from about half two years earlier, but still not good. Researchers at Parks Associates found that even as more Americans are using smart TV functions, streaming device usage has grown even faster.

"If you're a streaming media box (maker), you've got much more ability to push new features out into the market at an affordable price," says Barbara Kraus, Parks Associates' director of research. "They're very stiff competition for smart TVs."

From the article "In A Connected World, Why Aren't Smart TVs Very Clever?" by Anick Jesdanun and Ryan Nakashima.

Previously In The News

Netflix Need Not Fear New Amazon Prime Spinoff Service

For those who think Amazon has the clout to steal away Netflix subscribers, the logic there isn't too easy to follow: the $9 price point for the new service simply isn't compelling enough to siphon aw...

WWE Hires New Executive For China Expansion

So far, WWE's 24-hour video service is available in 180 countries across Asia, Europe and other regions. By the end of 2015, WWE posted nearly 280,000 paid international subscribers, accounting for...

The Caregiving Boom: Where the Job Opportunities Are

Some 117 million Americans are expected to need caregiving assistance by 2020, according to the recently released Caregiving Innovation Frontiers (CIF) study conducted by AARP and Parks Associates. Ye...

Sprint Launches New Unlimited Freedom Plan With Unlimited Data, Talk And Text

Wireless data usage is growing steadily from 2015 to 2016 as consumers shift data-heavy activities from desktop to mobile. According to Parks Associates’ latest survey data, average monthly wireless d...

‹
1
2
...
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
...
719
720
›