Communications and Technology Industry Research

ABI Research's (News - Alert) new study, "Internet-Connected TVs" reveals some interesting facts about the potential evolution of the connected TV hardware and related software markets. It includes historical data and forecasts for the years 2002 to 2015.

According to new forecasts from ABI Research, the estimated 19 percent of flat panel TVs shipping with Ethernet in 2010 will grow to 46 percent in 2013, and connectivity is expected to become a mainstream feature. This tremendous growth and evolution of Internet-connected TV market, according to the research, can be attributed to the growing demand for connected devices.

It comes as no surprise when one comes to learn about the list of feature that the viewers will come to see and interact with on these connected sets.

According to industry analyst Michael Inouye, "New features will include media guides/browsing, Web browsing, and more tightly integrated social and information-based datasets."

New opportunities for advertising and cross-marketing will flow from these developments too, as well as new roles for the television manufacturers. "TV makers no longer want to build 'dumb screens. Rather than simply selling boxes, TV makers themselves could try to secure part of the revenue generated by ads their devices present," Inouye added.

Of course TV makers won't be providing all the contents. There are companies such as Netflix, that would provide application to be used with connected TVs.

The tight integration of software and hardware creates difficulties, because each manufacturer's combination of hardware and operating system works in different ways. This requires the applications to be compatible with each brand of television. And this requires quite a good deal of customization. That has discouraged some app developers. However, the good news is: quite a good many of manufacturers are pushing ahead.

In addition, there is the networking. After making some early headway, WiFi has given way to wired formats, which are more robust, especially for HD content. G.hn, HomePNA (News - Alert), MoCA, and Powerline are all contenders in the long term, perhaps displacing the currently most robust solution, Ethernet.

There have been some efforts in the past to standardize all this multiplicity including Vudu streams everything from the Cloud. An Android (News - Alert) OS is also expected to help compatibility. Such initiatives will take time to mature.

"This market is very fluid and uncertain, and with so many parties vying for a piece of the action, that fluidity may persist for years," Inouye sums up.