Hybrid Set-Top Boxes Empower Satellite Vendors to Compete in an On-Demand World

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Hybrid set-top boxes are rapidly being deployed by pay-TV operators worldwide to help them deliver advanced services and manage bandwidth scarcity in broadcast networks. In 2010, only 40% of set-top boxes worldwide featured hybrid capabilities, with many not yet enabled by software as operators were not ready to deploy IP video services. Hybrid box penetration will rise above 60% by 2016 as operators look at IP-based video on demand (VOD) and advertising solutions, as well as interactive content. Hybrid set-top boxes have the ability to decode video sent over the Internet or over two types of networks (such as satellite and terrestrial).

“Huawei has powered to first in IPTV set-top box market share from a distant fourth – a sign that APAC IPTV growth will outpace that of Europe in the coming years,” says Jason Blackwell, practice director, digital home. “Pace is once again the worldwide leader for set-top box shipments, with Motorola remaining in second place, and Technicolor a close third.”

“Satellite operators are looking to Internet-enabled set-top boxes to deliver advanced services over-the-top (OTT) in regions with strong broadband penetration,” says Sam Rosen, senior analyst, digital home. “In addition, operators in Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa are looking at hybrid satellite – Digital Terrestrial TV (DTT) platforms to offer national and international feeds integrated with local programming in a bandwidth-efficient way.”

ABI Research’s “Set-Top Box Market Data” presents an overview of global STB shipments across seven video platforms: digital cable, digital satellite (pay services and free-to-air), IPTV, and digital terrestrial TV (pay services and free-to-air). It also contains detailed data on TV household by platform, annual shipment forecasts for each technology and box type, and also segmented by encoding standard. It includes forecasts for hybrid set-top box shipments as well as cable gateway shipments.

It is part of the TV and Video Research Service.