DTV Set Sales Soar In US, But Set-Top Boxes Lag

This assessment is based on the rate at which consumers are buying DTV-enabled integrated television sets and monitors. In July, factory-to-dealer sales rose by 81% year on year, with a total value of $379.3 million. However, sales of stand-alone set-top box equipment began to stall, down by 44.0% in July.

“Compared to the same period last year, we have sold nearly double the DTV products in 2002. With more than 400 products on the market, consumers are embracing marketplace choice and the phenomenal benefits of high definition television. Consumer electronics manufacturers hope to soon see that consumer enthusiasm extended to the digital cable industry as well,” says Shapiro.

“Consumers want to view content in the same manner in which they are accustomed to viewing analogue programming. For the majority of American consumers, that means through cable. We urgently need digital cable and DTV equipment compatibility to see this transition skyrocket.”