While a multitude of non-PC devices will play a role in the connected
living room of the future, that doesn’t means
the PC will fade away. In fact, according to a new study from ABI
Research, PCs are destined to play an ever-increasing role in the
management, distribution and playback of multimedia content in the home,
with both network-connected PC media servers and in-living room PCs
growing in adoption over time. Both AV form factor home theater PCs and
more traditional home theater PCs will grow to an installed base
worldwide of 25 million by 2013.
“There are two primary ways the PC can be
incorporated into the digital living room,”
says principal analyst Steve Wilson. “One has
a PC directly connected to a client device, a home theater PC, or in the
form of a PC integrated with a display. The other involves using an
embedded client to extend the PC output to a TV.”
Microsoft’s bundling of the Media Center
application with Vista will help solidify the role of the PC in future
living rooms, and clients running over home networks and extender
technologies will be by far the leading way to connect a PC to the TV.
However, ABI Research believes these efforts will take time, and there
will be some bumps in the road, as shown by the fate of Intel’s
Viiv program. Further, while new broadband-based services may bypass the
home PC initially, the PC model will become more inclusive in the future.
There will still be a small market of home theater PC enthusiasts who
buy custom-designed home theater PC systems resembling consumer
audiovisual equipment. While all-in-one systems are a bit bulky today,
in the future we will see more optimized designs for converging the PC
and TV.
“While the custom install market has some
appetite for the best high end home theater PCs, it’s
a very limited demand,” says Wilson. “Tech-savvy
consumers who understand the advantages of a home theater PC are still
price-sensitive and unwilling to pay ultra-high prices.”
Home
Theater and Media Center PCs in the Living Room (http://www.abiresearch.com/products/market_research/Home_Theater_and_
Media_Center_PCs_in_the_Living_Room) (Due to its length, this URL
may need to be copied/pasted into your Internet browser's address field.
Remove the extra space if one exists.) examines the forces driving the
home theater PC market and how regional factors are influencing adoption
throughout the world. Forecasts are provided on a regional basis for key
markets and products.
In forms part of two ABI Research Services: Consumer
Video Technologies (http://www.abiresearch.com/products/service/SE-CVT),
and Home
Networking (http://www.abiresearch.com/products/service/SE-HNET).
ABI Research is a leading market research firm focused on the impact of
emerging technologies on global consumer and business markets. Utilizing
a unique blend of market intelligence, primary research, and expert
assessment from its worldwide team of industry analysts, ABI Research
assists hundreds of clients each year with their strategic growth
initiatives. For information, visit www.abiresearch.com,
or call +1.516.624.2500.
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