August 6, 2008

Forecast: Integrated DTVs Threaten Set-Tops

IMS Research is forecasting that shipments of integrated digital TVs (iDTVs) will grow to 143 million in 2013, up from and estimated 52 million in 2007. Given that Samsung, LG, Sony, and Funai have signed on to make tru2way certified iDTVs for the US and Korean cable markets and that every iDTV sold in the EU must support a conditional access module interface for pay TV, the days of the set-top box could be numbered. IMS says that in Japan, iDTVs already displace about 1.7 million satellite set-top box shipments each year, and that tru2way iDTVs are likely to do the same in the States.