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More than 60 per cent of U.S. households with broadband Internet service already own a tablet, and 70 per cent of those households with income over $100,000 already own both a tablet and a smartphone, according to a survey by Parks Associates.

The iPad's share of households with tablets dropped to 37 per cent this year from 46 per cent two years ago.

From the article "Investors yawn as new iPads fail to impress" by Aaron Pressman.

Corporations and other large institutions are perhaps the only remaining under-exploited niche that could aid iPad sales, notes Parks Associates analyst Tejas Mehta. Apple struck a deal with IBM (IBM) earlier this year to try and bolster enterprise sales.

“There is a lot of potential growth there,” says Mehta. “The key is to extend the functionality of the iPad, so it’s not just a device that is used for (Internet) access and entertainment.”

From the article "Apple's new ...read more

Smart watches have been in the tech news a lot lately—particularly since Apple introduced its much-anticipated Apple Watch last week. Still, while some analysts suggest smart watch sales will grow rapidly, others aren’t so sure. A Parks Associates survey released in June reported that just 4 percent of U.S. broadband households are very likely to purchase a smart watch in the next 12 months.

So, if you’ve thought about getting one of these devices for yourself, bravo for bei ...read more

“It’s a technique worth trying,” says Jennifer Kent, a senior analyst at market researcher Parks Associates. “Mobile payments have had a difficult time getting traction with consumers.”

A possible Apple rewards program could offer discounts with participating retailers or points to make free purchases from Apple’s popular iTunes stores. Apple said it isn't collecting transactional data from Apple Pay, so rewards might work through partnerships with retailers or credit card i ...read more

According to Parks Associates, 2.8 million so-called smart watches were sold last year, along with another 13.6 million fitness tracking devices.

From the article "Apple Unveils Watch, Bigger-Screen IPhones in Product Blitz" by Adam Satariano and Tim Higgins.

If you don't have an Internet-connected TV, or the one you have isn't able to access some services you'd like to use, you may be considering a stand-alone streaming media player. That's no surprise; market research firm Parks Associates forecasts that by 2015, one-quarter of all U.S. households will own one of these devices.

From the article "Roku 3 tops Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, and Chromecast in streaming player shootout."

For example, research by Parks Associates published in June shows that 43 percent of US homes with a broadband internet connection are already willing to invest in a smart home package if it offers home management, safety and security features.

From the article "Report: Apple is developing smart home devices."

Nearly 20 percent of homes now use some sort of set-top box for viewing media on their TVs and the popularity of the devices is continuing to grow.

However, it appears that consumers are not so impressed with Google's Chromecast. According to Parks Associates, although use of streaming devices is on the rise -- only 14 percent of US homes used the gadgets two years ago -- those homes with a Chromecast connected to their TVs -- 6 percent -- are using the device less and less. ...read more