Ultra HD (UHD) is being embraced by consumers and is on its way to becoming a standard television feature, according to Strategy Analytics.UHD is on track to become an established feature of TVs by 2020, with falling prices, increased retailer support and strong customer satisfaction the main reasons for its success, Strategy states, predicting global UHD TV sales this year may exceed 30 million units, and that by 2020, 61 per cent of annual TV sales will be UHD.
By 2020, Strategy additionally predicts that more than 20 per cent of households in leading markets will be using UHD services from pay TV or online video providers.
Consumers are becoming increasingly familiar with UHD technology, with Strategy’s August 2015 survey of 2,000 US consumers finding nearly two thirds of people have heard of UHD, with 30 per cent stating they have seen a UHD TV in a home, retail store or other location.
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UHD video quality has made its mark, with 95 per cent of people saying they were extremely or somewhat impressed.
“Ultra HD is rapidly becoming a de facto standard in the large-screen TV market,” David Watkins, Strategy director, connected home devices, commented.
“As prices fall, tier one vendors like Samsung, LG and Sony are now looking to entice customers with enhanced UHD TVs which add wider colour gamut and high dynamic range capabilities.”
David Mercer, Strategy principal analyst, added that early consumer reaction makes it clear UHD “is here to stay”.
“Service providers in pay TV and online video are now responding to this demand by launching new Ultra HD services, and we expect this to be a major trend in the TV industry in the next few years,” Mercer commented.
