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BusinessWire: Demand for Internet-enabled televisions is growing rapidly, according to a new study by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA).

The study, Net-Enabled Video: Early Adopters Only?, found that about half of prospective TV buyers say they are likely to purchase an Internet-connected TV.

The study reveals numerous ways consumers would use an Internet-enabled TV. Nearly half (48 percent) of U.S. online adults would use their web-enabled TV to find out more information on upcoming shows and identify a song that played during the show. Forty-four percent also would use the web to find out more information about the actors featured on-screen.

Having anytime-access to content, and accessing the Internet and television broadcasts together were the top benefits of an Internet-enabled TV, according to consumers. “As we saw at the 2009 International CES, Internet-enabled devices are taking the consumer technology experience to the next level, and nowhere is this more pronounced than with television,” said Shawn DuBravac, CEA’s economist and director of research.

“Consumers want more from their TV experience and marrying traditional television with Internet access is providing the next frontier of the television experience.” The study also found that most adults are already online while watching TV.

Almost a third of online adults (30 percent) say they always or usually surf the Internet while watching television and another third (32 percent) say they sometimes do. Consumers are increasingly willing to shift online activities to the TV. Watching online video has the highest potential conversion rate (62 percent) followed by weather updates (59 percent) and playing online games (57 percent).

“Consumers are already using the Internet while they watch TV. The next frontier is to create a seamless experience bringing the two together,” said DuBravac. “Consumers want a variety of content that they can access anytime. An Internet-enabled TV is perfectly positioned to provide consumers with exactly what they are looking for in their next television experience.”

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DigiTimes: US Consumer spending on subscription-TV, broadband, and mobile services will be “about the same” for most consumers, but about 15% intend to cut back, according to In-Stat.

As a result, the research firm estimates that consumer spending across these three segments could see nearly a US$5 billion decrease during the next 12 months.

In-Stat also found that broadband services are among the most integral parts of consumers’ lives.

Over 66 million consumers across demographic categories are using the Internet while camped out on their sofas watching TV.

“Some male age groups had 40% to 50% of respondents using a PC while watching TV, and about 30% of females under the age of 40 are also using a PC while watching TV,” said Gerry Kaufhold, In-Stat analyst.

“New approaches using online web portals synchronized to a TV program will continue to develop, because they present no new costs. Cable TV operators also face increasing competition from lightweight services that deliver popular cable programming, supplemented by content delivered via broadband.”

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TGDaily: With the US presidential inauguration, major awards shows, X-Games and other major events occurring recently it is no shock that users took to YouTube to catch up on things missed and to check out the videos they want to see again.

It’s even less surprising that YouTube has much to be excited about, as the company surpassed the 100 million viewer mark in the United States alone, making them the #3 most visited website on the the Internet (and also #3 in U.S.), and #3 in most traffic, accounting for around 17% of all Internet traffic world-wide.

This gives an idea as to the demand and growth of the online video industry. When Google acquired the video site in 2006, they obviously made a great decision as the site now ranks as the most popular provider of online video in the United States.

In January alone about 6.4 billion videos were viewed, this is the equivalent of 43 percent of the video market in the United States.

The figures released from comScore reveal that web surfers in the United States alone sat down to watch over 15 billion videos each month over many different video sites, however YouTube is the site drawing the most attention and the majority of users.  At one point, YouTube accounted for over 20% of all Internet traffic (May/June, 2008).

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HomeToys: Video-on-demand (VoD) libraries and widgets will be the first generation of video services driving adoption of connected television experiences in the U.S., according to international research firm Parks Associates.

Consumer electronics manufacturers and service providers will benefit from higher margins and ARPU generation in providing these Web-like experiences via the television.

Parks Associates, in its new white paper From Boob Tube to YouTube: Consumers and TV, reports strong interest among U.S. broadband households for VoD libraries and TV widgets, which are Web-like displays that show customized news, weather, sports, or traffic information. In particular, 33% are interested in widgets, and almost 50% are interested in premium Web content, including TV shows and movies, through a connected set-top box.

“Broadband households are growing accustomed to viewing video off the Internet,” said Kurt Scherf, vice president, principal analyst, Parks Associates. “Demand for Web and user-generated content will increase, and those desires will influence their CE purchases and service provider choices. Widgets and VoD libraries will be the first in a long line of advanced video services people will want in their living rooms.”

Scherf said that consumers respond favorably to enhanced interactive features and are willing to pay – either on the price of a television or as an additional subscription cost – for certain features.

“For manufacturers and service providers, creative, well-organized interactive services will be key to creating new value out of the television,” Scherf said.

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NewLaunches.com: Philips has unveiled its internet based TV service, NET TV, for the customers in the United Kingdom.

Initially it will be targeting the high-end TV lineups enabling partnered internet contents to be displayed and browsed through a user-friendly and a simplified web-TV layout.

Currently it includes, You Tube, Tom Tom, eBay, MetreoGroup, Funspot, MyAlbum and Netlog.

Contents from these are optimized with Philips-friendly web-TV app and are accessible via remote control on a home-network wired LAN (8000 series) or a wireless connectivity (9000 series).

The Net TV is said to be live from April.

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EngadgetHD:Given just how few Europeans are actually biting on pay-HDTV, we suppose we’re not too surprised to see the results from Parks Associates Research’s latest study.

In looking at a number of European nations, the firm found that some 80 percent of broadband households “prefer a more traditional option for viewing video, including going to the cinema or watching a DVD.”

John Barrett, director of research at the company, noted that it “will be difficult for companies to sell video streams and downloads to consumers in Europe when there is this undercurrent of reluctance.”

Of course, we’re not sure we believe all this doom and gloom — surely it’s just a matter of time before Euro cable companies are pulling the same trick as Comcast and TWC are looking to do. Or, so we hope.

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