Upper middle class households are target for Internet-connected TV devices, says study

July 15, 2008 - New research has found that the target US household for Internet-connected TV devices is in the upper middle class with an income of between US$100,000 and US$150,000, ideally with children and located in a metropolitan area on the East or West Coast.

The research, by US firm MultiMedia Research, adds that current consumers with home networks and consumers using Internet-based video provide "tremendous insights" into the target consumer segment for the next generation of connected consumer electronics devices. Digital media adaptors, such as offered by companies including Apple, Netflix, Amazon and Vudu, are expected to build upon the existing base of computer-centric home networks to "establish a media-driven connected home", along with a variety of Internet-enabled consumer electronics.

"Some consumer segments, such as youth and early adopters, see the PC as an acceptable platform for media consumption," said Mark Kirstein, President of MultiMedia Intelligence. "However, a much broader market becomes available when Internet video and music can reach the entertainment-centric platforms of connected TVs, DVD players, set top boxes, video game consoles and audio equipment."

Older households, with a head of household aged 60 to 69, were reported to be among the fastest-growing segments adopting data home networking, with the total seeing a compound annual growth rate of 29% between 2004 and 2007. Consumers who access the Internet at home with a notebook PC were also found to be twice as likely to have a home network than the average household.