U.S. Consumer Awareness Of IPTV High

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February 13, 2006 (7:41 PM EST)

By Antone Gonsalves , TechWeb Technology News

Despite limited availability in the United States, 56 percent of all adults say they have heard of Internet television, and a substantial number say they are interested in having it on their home TVs and computers, a market research firm said Monday.

The survey by Harris Interactive also found that IPTV posed a threat to cable and satellite services. Fully 17 percent of the respondents said they would cancel their existing TV service for IPTV, while two thirds said they would keep their existing cable or satellite service and give Internet TV a trial run. Only 7 percent said they would add IPTV to their existing service.

The attraction for IPTV included the perception that it would be less expensive than cable or satellite, and that the technology could provide programming on demand, instead of on a schedule. Many adults also believed it would deliver a broader array of programming, high-definition viewing and an interactive program guide with navigation and search functions.

A quarter of adults said they were quite interested in IPTV for use on their TVs, and one in five expressed interest in adopting its use on their computers. Less than 4 percent said they were interested in viewing IPTV on a cellular phone.

Fully 12 percent of adults were ready to sign up for IPTV immediately for the PC, and 18 percent said they would try it right away if it was available for the PC, and could be sent to the TV using a set-top box. Almost 60 percent said they would wait to see how others liked it.