82% of U.S. broadband households now have an HDTV

Dallas, Tex., March 31, 2014--Parks Associates announced new research today predicting 4K TVs will follow a similar, but faster, growth pattern as HDTVs, which have reached 82% of U.S. broadband households after 15 years on the market. The research "4K Today: Bringing Ultra HD to Market" predicts 4K TVs will reach mass-market pricing in the next 2-3 years and top 80% of households in approximately 10-12 years.

Parks Associates analysts note 4K will initially be delivered via OTT, with companies like Netflix, Comcast, and Amazon already working on 4K-based offerings, and as 4K traffic increases over the next two years, traffic demands on broadband networks will grow dramatically. As a result, operators are aggressively looking into bandwidth-saving technologies, including next-generation video compression technologies.

"4K TV adoption is following the same pattern as HDTV, but prices are dropping more quickly," said Stuart Sikes, President, Parks Associates. "With the increasing convergence in the connected home, innovations such as 4K have implications for a variety of players throughout the home entertainment ecosystem."

The research firm will discuss new media and licensing strategies, as well as the implications of 4K and other innovative technologies and applications in the connected home, at the 18th-annual CONNECTIONS™: The Premier Connected Home Conference, May 13-15 at the San Francisco Airport Marriott Waterfront.

Keynotes include AT&T, Cisco, Lowe’s, ARRIS, and iControl Networks, and the event will feature multiple sessions analyzing the video ecosystem, including connected CE and OTT solutions.

Over 350 executives from start-ups, Fortune 500, venture capitalists, public relations, and media companies participate in and attend CONNECTIONS™. Industries represented include new media; digital entertainment and gaming; home networks; Internet and television services; software and middleware; digital health; mobile apps and services; advanced advertising; consumer electronics; home controls systems and security; and energy management.

Registration is open. For more information, visit www.connectionsus.com. Please follow the conference on Twitter at @CONNECTIONS_US and #CONNUS14. Join the connected home conversation on our CONNECTIONS™ Industry Insights Blog at http://www.parksassociates.com/blog/category/industry-insights.