According to global research from The Diffusion Group, close to one-third of non-HDTV households are interested in purchasing a new HDTV in the next six months – a very encouraging sign for HDTV manufacturers and, by relation, high-def DVD manufacturers claims the researchers.
More interesting, perhaps, is that the same research found that the characteristics of these "HDTV Intenders" vary widely from that of current HDTV owners. HDTV Intenders tend to be younger, single, more ethnically diverse, and have lower annual household incomes than current HDTV owners – in many respects more characteristic of mainstream consumers than the early adopters who today own an HDTV.
While this trend could in theory benefit either Blu-ray or HD DVD, the data suggests otherwise. Among HDTV Intenders who are likely to purchase a new high-def DVD player in the next six months, 43% prefer HD DVD, 27% prefer Blu-ray, and 30% are undecided.
