One in four digital TV plugged into the internet in Japan
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It’s now about a year since acTVila launched, a facility for using your television as a media centre, allowing download of movies (and other contents) on demand for both free and pay contents. This recent survey from Marsh Inc and reported on by japan.internet.com looked at this subject of acTVila.
Demographics
Between the 12th and 15th of February 2009 300 members of the Marsh monitor group completed a private internet-based questionnaire. 50.0% of the sample were female, 20.0% in their teens, 20.0% in their twenties, 20.0% in their thirties, 20.0% in their forties, 14.l7% in their fifties, and 5.3% aged sixty or older.
I’m very surprised to see that a quarter of all digital television watchers have plugged their television into the internet. Although my HDD player is network ready, I’ve never had the urge to plug it in as I don’t really see what the point is. It would enable me to program it remotely from a mobile phone, but I’ve never been in the situation where I thought this might be useful.
On the other hand, I have got a bunch of ideas about what features might encourage more people to plug in which I plan to talk about at work next Monday, so I’d better not say anything here as my employer will no doubt want to bury them in the patent process.
Oh, and sorry for the delay in posting, but I’m in Athens on a business trip, and I couldn’t get my internet to work in the airport lounges along the way!
Research results
Q1: Do you view digital television at home? (Sample size=300)
Yes (to SQ1) 43.7% No 54.0% Don’t know what digital television is 2.3% Q1SQ1: Is your home digital television connected to the internet? (Sample size=131)
Yes (to SQ2) 25.2% No 73.3% Don’t know 1.5% Q1SQ2: Have you used acTVila on your home digital television? (Sample size=33)
Yes 37.5% No 62.5% Don’t know 0.0%
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Does that on-screen program guide for recording shows and so on require an internet connection?
We do have our television (and DVR) connected, but neither I nor my wife ahve any idea what it’s supposedly good for. When we got them, they had an ethernet port, and we had a free port in the wall, so I stuck a cable in between. Can’t say I’ve ever noticed any use for it – unless, of course, that program guide above uses it in which it’s pretty useful.
check http://yourtvonline.com
Janne, I am pretty sure the on-screen guide (EPG, Electronic Program Guide) all gets delivered over the air. The internet might enhance the experience (previews, for instance), however.
The three main features I am aware of (outside AcTVila) that use the network are 1) software updates, 2) remote programming, and 3) interactive TV, although the only interactive program I am aware of is 8 pm Friday’s Bakusho Mondai’s Oita’s If I Were Prime Minister, which has a public vote on their topic of discussion.
It’s a good point that most new flats come already plumbed for ethernet and each room has these multi-purpose connection points with mains power, TV, satellite, internet and telephone, so it’s perhaps no surprise that many people just plug everything in.
Indeed, that might have been an interesting question “What do you use the TV internet for?” – perhaps the full paid-for survey included that question.
Sky TV (UK digital satellite) requires an internet connection to operate. I can’t see why regular broadcast digital TV would need one.
I had a Freeview box (free broadcast digital TV) in the UK for several years and never bothered to connect it. I think you are supposed to get firmware upgrades, for what that’s worth.
I suspect a lot of users probably think their digital TV is connected to the Internet because it’s digital. That would have been an interesting question to ask.