Blog articles from 07/2008

Sales of NAS devices to reach 13 million by 2012 The rapid growth in digital content libraries will push worldwide sales of network-attached storage devices to nearly 13 million units by 2012, according to Parks Associates’ Home Servers and Consumer Storage: Analysis and Forecasts. In targeting this broader market, companies should develop storage solutions that emphasize easier file allocation, searching, and media sharing, Shields said. Manufacturers and retailers must...

Parks Associates and CEA® announced they will again host CONNECTIONS™ Summit at CES, January 8-9, 2009, in Las Vegas, and are currently accepting speaker submissions for the event. CONNECTIONS™ Summit features nine sessions on key digital-living topics during the first two days of 2009 International CES.CONNECTIONS™ Summit Sessions at CES feature nine sessions held the first two days at CES. Moderated by Parks Associates analysts, these sessions provide an interactive...

Wow - what an active week for support-related articles. Just when you count on Best Buy being able to fend off the Wal-Marts of the world by deploying a battalion of Geeks to customer homes, Wal-Mart is apparently not going to sit idle. TWICE Magazine reports that the retailer will open "Solution Stations" in 15 Dallas-area stores. The support services - which will be managed by Dell - will include HDTV and home theater installation, computer repair, wireless solutions and...

Okay, we have an official home networking customer support trifecta for July 23, 2008: a home networking support story (Cisco buys Pure Networks), a service provider support story (Comcast struggles with support), and now the retail angle (Best Buy vs. Circuit City) in today's USA TODAY . Costco, Sam's Club, and Wal-Mart, etc. are becoming a more important channel for electronics sales, Our own research from The Changing Consumer Electronics Purchase Process indicates that - among...

After posting the news about Cisco's acquisition of Pure Networks, The Washington Post's daily update dropped into my e-mail inbox, with the following headline : Call the Cable Guy. Again. As Comcast Grows, Service Problems Dog Customers The article focuses on complaints that Comcast's investments in improving customer service have not come as rapidly as the growth it's enjoyed in deploying broadband, television, and bundled services to its customers. This was...

First, Cisco acquired Ashley-Laurent to strengthen its residential gateway management software capabilities. Then, they acquired WebEx, and are using some of its features for remote customer support applications. Today, the company announced that it was acquiring Seattle-based Pure Networks, a company that has developed home networking management and software tools. It looks like Cisco is playing its cards to develop a complete end-to-end digital home support portfolio. I wonder who's...

Parks Associates Study Outlines Strengths and Weaknesses in MMORPG Market... Massive multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) publishers may have to start giving away playing time to attract more players into online role-playing worlds, according to Parks Associates’ Electronic Gaming in the Digital Home II. This consumer study of 2,000+ U.S. Internet gamers found only power gamers are interested in subscribing to an MMORPG service, whereas social, dormant, and leisure...

Intel Health has moved from scientific research to product development in its quest for new personal care models empowered by the digital technology. Its Health Guide PHS6000 home health gateway passed the muster of FDA’s 510(k) review recently, and according to the company, will be ready for market launch in late 2008 or early 2009. I first saw it at this year’s American Telemedicine Association Annual Show. The device appears to have all the major features to enable the remote home...