Comments on: Sure, People Will Buy ‘Connected TVs,’ But Will Anyone Actually Use Them?

By: Richard Bullwinkle

Richard Bullwinkle — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 20:30:01 +0000

You ask a good question. I will say that some, if not most, of the connected TVs have missed the mark in consumer experience. (Disclaimer, I work for Rovi, and we build guides and provide metadata for connected devices.) Most of the TVs so far have a completely different experience for online viewing than for the traditional viewing from a cable or satellite box. Further, they only offer one or two services for online content.

For users to truly discover online viewing on a new connected device, the same place where they search for what’s on tonight has to reveal multiple online destinations for catch-up TV, or movies with the same actors, etc. When I search for Modern Family, and then take a look at Ed O’neil, let me link to Netflix’s backlog of Married With Children and or The Spanish Prisoner in Amazon. Many folks don’t know what they’re looking for (about 84%, actually have no idea what they want to watch when they sit down to watch TV), and this sort of exploration will open up the world of connected content for them, thus making it much more compelling to connect that new connected TV.

By: Samantha Steinwinder

Samantha Steinwinder — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 15:43:04 +0000

I’m more computer savvy than the average American, and it took us 6 months to get connected with our connected TV (via Sony BD). Finally identifying home WiFi interference and an old router as culprits. Now that we’re connected, I still can’t watch outside the home. True connectivity moves your content from the home to the car to the plane, to the waiting room. I’m still waiting.

By: Greg Fitzgerald

Greg Fitzgerald — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 12:48:03 +0000

Love the iPad, but…. I’m one of those Netflix fans that spend much more time watching HD episodes of MI-5 on a Roku box on a 40 inch monitor than I do seeing the same program on the Netflix iPad app. The data on those not using connected TVs may be the result of whole host of reasons, however, not just the fact that there’s not enough out there to convince someone to plug into the network. There’s a significant percentage of TV users, (with well enough income to purchase an upscale Connected TV) who haven’t a clue what to do with wifi or an Ethernet cable. These are the same folks whose VCRs were blinking “12:00″ 24/7 back in the 90′s. Manufacturers will need to do much more to make the transition to connected viewing as simple as possible. Getting past simple security measures will be challenging many (What the hell is WEP security?) Until just recently there was a very large percentage of HD monitor owners who thought they were watching HD TV, even though they never upgraded their cable boxes to HD. It took millions of federal dollars to fund an HD TV education campaign as we closed the chapter on analog TV. Manufacturers may have to step up to the plate to tackle the knowledge gap when it comes to Connected TV.

By: Jeff Matthews

Jeff Matthews — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 01:39:53 +0000

I’d echo the previous comment. The iPad–and I have bought more than 10 Windows-based desktops and notebooks for my business over the last 15 years, so I’m not a Mac-head–is replacing them all. It is absolutely necessary, and it is one big reason this silly “connected TV” idea will never fly: the iPad connects everything inside one gorgeous flat screen. So how a consumer guru says it is “not necessary” is beyond me. It is 100-times more productive than an Internet-ready TV, and costs less. Who wouldn’t want one?

By: Jeff Matthews

Jeff Matthews — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 01:39:53 +0000

By: Andrew Reid

Andrew Reid — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 00:12:36 +0000

You lost me with the comment “Yet at the same time millions of people are finding from $500 to $850 to buy an iPad, a device they don’t truly need.” Where’s the research supporting that assumption? Speaking from personal experience, the iPad has now replaced the home laptop for 90% of the time. By the same token, my main TV is IP ready, but I would never ‘lean forward’ to experience the web on this device. A ‘lean back’ option, where I download feature films and best-choice TV is certainly an option, but its not a browsing device.

By: danrayburn

danrayburn — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 23:33:29 +0000

Well said James. You ask the real question of not how many will be sold, but how many will be connected to the net and be capable of supporting the kind of experience consumers will be looking for.