Manufacturers will have to install features currently only available as paid-for add-ons in top-of-the-range HDTV models if sales growth is to be sustained.
That is the conclusion of a report by research firm DisplaySearch which suggests that sales of HDTVs will peak in the next two or three years.
It goes on to say that sales will then fall unless manufacturers can add compelling features that consumers are willing to pay for.
Calvin Hsieh, the director of research at DisplaySearch, said internet connectivity, full 1080p resolution, PVR capabilities and upgraded HDMI port specifications need to become standard fare by next year.
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The refund rate on LCD TVs has increased to 25-30 per cent in North America despite a drop in prices by branded TV retailers.
Many vendors reduced prices for 32-inch and 40-inch LCD TVs in May in an attempt to boost sales.
However, the move has led to a rise in the number of products being returned as viewer expectations about the quality of high-definition images rises.
Sony Pictures has announced that it is bringing one of the world famous Cirque Du Soleil’s performances to Blu-ray later this year.
“Cirque Du Soleil: Corteo”, by the celebrated troupe that has thrilled audiences on five continents, is due to be released on September 2nd.
Sony said disk would capture all the magic of the performance in stunning high definition. No specs or special features have been announced at this time.
The move is the latest digital venture by the circus, which has been seen by close to 80 million spectators in over 200 cities.
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The head of the UK’s Freesat digital service believes viewers will begin to resent paying for HDTV as increasing numbers regard it as the new “standard”.
Emma Scott, managing director of Freesat, which launched in May, said there were already over 10m HD ready TV sets in UK homes.
But at the time of Freesat’s launch only around 5 per cent of those HD ready homes were actually watching television programmes in high definition – and by subscription.
Addressing the Broadcast Digital Channels Conference 2008 earlier this month, she said consumers and retailers wanted HD content– but it was the broadcasters that had taken a while to catch up.
“Free HD is a long term opportunity for broadcasters and for Freesat,” she said. “HD is not a gimmick, it’s a new standard for television and one which every broadcaster I’ve met would love to deliver its content in."
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The US’s leading provider of HDTV has credited its 95 channels of HD content as one of the main reason for increasing subscribers even as the economy falters.
Paul Guyardo, DirecTV’s chief marketing officer, said the company had not been greatly affected by the US economic slowdown.
DirecTV added 275,000 subscribers in the first quarter, compared to just 35,000 for rival Dish Network.
He attributed the satcaster’s market-leading HD offering as a major factor in the increase.
“I don’t want to say that we are recession-proof, but I will say that we have not been dramatically affected by the recession,” he said.
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Sales of LCD and plasma TVs showed a 53 per cent year-on-year increase in the US for the first quarter of 2008, with more than 7.5 million units sold.
This represents a 7 per cent increase over industry projections for the period.
While analysts in Japan have attributed a 35 per cent increase in flat-panel TV sales during the first half of June to the upcoming Beijing Olympics, industry executives in the US are being more cagey.
But what those attending the DisplaySearch TV Supply Chain Conference in San Diego did agree on was that despite the state of the US economy, the North America TV market remains robust – so far.
The race to perfect a wireless HDTV system is being contested by three competing technologies, each one with particular advantages without offering the complete package.
But within three years one will have emerged as the dominant system, according to a study by ABI Research.
This is expected to take global installations from an estimated 100,000 this year to the milestone one million by 2012.
Steve Wilson, principal analyst on the report “Wireless Video Cable Replacement Market and Technologies”, said the wireless HDTV market was still in its “incubation” stage.
He said a “battle of technologies” was being fought by the three contending systems, loosely characterised as 5 GHz, 60 GHz, and ultra wideband (UWB).
Seventy-five per cent of pay TV operators in Asia have, or expect to have, HDTV programming by the end of 2008.
But the lack of substantial HDTV content – both local and international – is seen as being the most important roadblock for developing the HDTV sector in the region.
These are among of the findings of a survey carried out for MEASAT Satellite Systems by Euroconsult into the development of high definition television in the Asia-Pacific region.
The study, which was conducted during May, polled the rationale, benefits, challenges and expectations of HDTV amongst the regions’ leading pay TV
operators.
A total of 25 operators in 15 markets, collectively serving more than 24 million subscribers, were interviewed.
It used to be that fighting your way through crowds to get a close-up of sporting stars such as Tiger Woods and Rafael Nadal was infinitely better than sitting at home watching the TV coverage.
But as growing numbers of sports fans upgrade to HDTVs it would appear that the lure of live events could be diminishing.
In the US, a top football club is experiencing what is likely to be a growing trend: a fall in season tickets sales as supporters decide they get a better view staying at home and watching games on their HDTVs.
Steve LaCroix, the Minnesota Vikings’ vice president of sales and marketing, said that HDTV is making his job more difficult.
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has signed a multi transponder deal with Intelsat Ltd for the video carriage of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games to Europe.
C-/Ku-band cross-strap capacity on the Intelsat 706 satellite, located at 50.2 degrees East, will be used to distribute the all high definition event to EBU members.
Intelsat is the only global satellite operator to have provided coverage of every Olympic Games since 1968.