Set-top Box Shipments Continue to Grow in 2010: iSuppli

Taipei, March 29, 2010 (CENS)--Worldwide shipments of set-top boxes (STBs) will continue to rise during the next few years as consumer viewing patterns shift and as TV content delivered via the Internet becomes more popular, setting the stage for providers to acquire new revenue in the fierce competitions for the digital home, according to iSuppli Corp.

The major technology value-chain research and advisory firm recently forecasted that a total of 147.8 million STBs would be shipped worldwide in 2010, up 11.5% from 132.6 million units last year. Shipments would continue to rise in the next few years and reach 193.9 million units by 2014, the company said.

The continued growth of STBs coincides with projections for a big boost in worldwide subscribers to Internet Protocol TV (IPTV), or digital TV delivered through the Internet and a broadband network, according to iSuppli, while global IPTV subscribers will increase to more than 123 million units by 2014, up from about 33 million at the end of 2009-rising at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of almost 30%.

STBs now must be considered the leading candidate for residential gateway systems-not only providing a bridge from the house to the outside world but also serving as a conduit within the home among network-attached appliances, including telephones, digital video recorders, PCs, game consoles, storage devices and security systems, a principle analyst of iSuppli noted.

Already, the integration of residential capabilities into STBs has begun, iSuppli said. Service providers like Iliad in France have launched a commercial product called the AliceBox-a single device that integrates a TV STB and a broadband modem. Other than the set-top box, however, iSuppli said it does not see in the immediate future any other consumer electronic device integrating the residential gateway function.

Global Set-top Box Shipment Forecast, 2007-2014 (Millions of Units)
	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014
Total Set-top Box Shipments	118.1	131.2	132.6	147.8	163.4	177.8	189.6	193.9
Source: iSuppli Corp. March 2010.