DisplaySearch Topical: HDTV Consumer Sentiment Study Reveals Very Few Consumers Have Redeemed DTV Converter Box Coupons

[The following is a release from DisplaySearch]

September 19, 2008

DisplaySearch today released the results of its HDTV Consumer Sentiment Study, indicating that less than 6% of respondents have redeemed DTV converter box coupons that were made available earlier this year. The results, based on a Fast Check survey by The NPD Group, consisted of nearly 800 consumers who were contacted in July. The survey focused on North American consumer sentiment of current issues facing the HDTV industry, like the upcoming Digital TV switchover in February 2009. 23% of respondents have at least one TV in the house receiving over-the-air programming, and almost 40% of those receive over-the-air programming exclusively. That means more than 25M TVs will need a solution for the digital TV transition—a large gap between those who have taken action and those that still need to. Paul Gagnon, DisplaySearch’s Director of North America TV Market Research, noted, “While more than half of the consumers surveyed felt that the issues surrounding the end of analog broadcasting have been adequately communicated, it’s surprising to see such a small percentage of the converter box coupons redeemed to date. This could be attributed to a lack of urgency on the part of consumers given that the analog cutoff date is still almost five months away, or they may be waiting to see if large price declines materialize for digital TVs during the holiday season. However, if a large number of consumers wait until the last minute, there could be problems satisfying the surge in demand for converter boxes all at once—ultimately leaving some in the dark.” Additional questions DisplaySearch asked during the survey were geared toward better understanding current US HDTV market penetration and demand, gauging consumer interest in evolving TV technologies, assessing consumer satisfaction levels of current HDTVs, and measuring consumer adoption rates of evolving technologies (Video-on-Demand, Blu-ray, Video-Sharing). The survey revealed some surprising results that help project where the majority of consumers get their movies for home viewing from and what the impact of the Blu-ray victory over HD-DVD has had on consumer’s plans to adopt the technology. DisplaySearch will be presenting a more detailed analysis of this study in the opening session today at the 6th Annual HDTV Conference. A report on the results of this unique new survey will be available to all conference attendees, but it will also be available as a stand-alone topical report after the conference to non-attendees for $1,500.

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