USA Today

The sharing of streaming video subscription passwords became a laughing matter during last week's Emmy Awards, but the funny business could eventually become a problem for video providers.

Credentials such as an email address and a password are needed to access video services, including Netflix and Hulu. And, in general, those credentials are intended to be used only by family members within a household.

But additional unauthorized sharing of credentials will likely cost ...read more

Although Internet-connected home appliances aren't widespread yet, adoption is set to take off this year, according to research from Parks Associates. According to the firm, 40% of broadband households in the US are planning to buy a smart home device in 2015, compared to the 16% of households that have them now.

From the article "Here's how Apple wants to turn your home into one giant iPhone" by Business Insider.

The Apple TV box has not been refreshed since 2012. And while Apple’s figure covers an 8 year span for sales, McQuivey said he believes Apple TV’s best years are behind it, as it’s been overtaken by more advanced boxes from Roku and Amazon.

An August study from Parks Associates put Roku in first place, with 34% market share for 2014, followed by Google’s Chromecast, Amazon and then Apple.

From the article "Can Siri revive Apple TV?" by Jefferson Graham.

Already more than half (57%) of the 120 million-plus U.S. broadband homes subscribe to an OTT video service, according to research firm Parks Associates.

Just as cable programming went niche in the '80s and '90s, many new OTT services "are designing services for particular consumer segments, such as families with young children, language-specific groups or people with unique interests," says Parks' research director Brett Sappington.

So, if there isn't an outlet catering ...read more

There will be 5 billion connected devices worldwide by the end of this year, and 25 billion by 2020, representing $263 billion in spending, according to the Gartner.

In the U.S., an estimated 13% of households own a connected device, with security systems being a common jumping off point into the Internet of Things, says Tom Kerber, director of research for connected home analysts Parks Associates, which organized the conference.

"What's notable is that 60% of people do ...read more

If consumers flock to Sling TV, which doesn't have live programming from major networks such as ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and PBS, it could weaken broadcasters' position in negotiations of fees for cable, satellite and online carriage of their signals, said Brett Sappington, director of research at consulting firm Parks Associates.

"If Sling TV is successful without broadcast channels, that could be a real wake-up call to the big broadcasters," he said.

Sling TV is designed to ...read more

Combine Sling TV with HBO's as-yet-undefined standalone Net service — and your choice of Amazon, Hulu or Netflix — and cord-cutting probably becomes even more attractive.

Nearly one in five broadband homes (17%) are likely to subscribe to HBO's service, which is due to begin operation this year, according to research firm Parks Associates. Many (91%) of those broadband homes are also pay-TV customers, and half would cancel pay TV once they get the new HBO service, the firm f ...read more

Sling TV will cost $20 monthly for about a dozen live Net-delivered TV channels, including ABC Family, Cartoon Network, CNN, Disney Channel, ESPN and ESPN 2, the Food Network, HGTV, TBS, TNT, The Travel Channel and Adult Swim.

And customers can add more channels via news, sports or kids extra packages ($5 monthly). "It's designed and targeted for millennials, who we see are not choosing traditional pay TV nearly like the previous generation," said Sling TV CEO Roger Lynch.