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Three Quarters of 18-34 Year-Olds Use Their Connected TV to Watch OTT Video According to The NPD Group

Over-the-Top (OTT) content, video delivered on connected devices via the Internet - including services such as YouTube and Netflix, is the most prominent way of accessing video content among 18-34 year-olds with connected TVs, according to the new Connected Intelligence Applications and Convergence Report from The NPD Group. Three quarters (75 percent) use their connected TV or the devices connecting them to view OTT video compared to 68 percent who use their connected TV to watch programming from their cable, satellite, or telecom TV provider.

The Complicated World of Mobile

by Eddie Hold on September 30, 2013 at 12:25 pm

High school math problems used to debate the expected collision times of two trains that are moving towards each other at different speeds. The when and where of this seemingly unavoidable collision was guaranteed to be somewhere in the year’s final exam, causing a gnashing of teeth and a frantic chewing of pencils. Ah, the good old days, and how easy we had it then. As core curriculums become focused on real-world problem solving, the rare issue of head-on train collisions is likely to be cast on the scrap heap. What I would propose instead is that the next generation of math problems relate to the complexities of mobile phone ownership.

The $7 Billion Gamble: Microsoft Buys Nokia

by Eddie Hold on September 3, 2013 at 5:00 pm

Microsoft is buying Nokia’s Devices and Services business for roughly $7 billion. The deal signals the end of an era in the mobile space, with Nokia effectively now pulling out of the mobile phone business. But beyond this era-ending component, Microsoft’s acquisition signals a bold move by the software giant to accelerate its plans in the mobile space by owning, for the first time, both the software and hardware required to grow the Windows Phone operating system, which currently accounts for less than 3% of the smartphone installed base in the US.

Family Network and Premium Movie Channel Viewers Are 20 Percent More Likely to Have TVs Connected to the Internet

PORT WASHINGTON, NEW YORK, AUGUST 14, 2013 – U.S. homes that tune into family network programming or subscribe to premium movie channels are 20 percent more likely than other network viewers to have their TV connected to the internet, according to a new Connected Intelligence report from global information company, The NPD Group. The Connected Home Consumer Index Report found that family network viewers are 22 percent more likely to have a TV hooked up to the Internet and premium movie channel subscribers are 19 percent more likely than the norm measured among all Internet homes. Forty percent of U.S. homes with an Internet connection have at least one TV that’s connected, either through the TV itself, a video game console, Blu-ray Disc player, or streaming media player.

More Than Half of New Smartphone Upgrades Will Be Trade-Ins, According to The NPD Group

PORT WASHINGTON, NEW YORK, AUGUST 5, 2013 – The awareness and momentum behind smartphone trade-ins is growing in the U.S.  According to a new NPD Connected Intelligence report, Trade In, Trade Up, Trade Out, more than 60 percent of smartphone consumers are aware of their trade-in options for a new device and 55 percent of them plan to take advantage of it the

Smartphone Trade-Ins Drive New Competitive Landscape

by Eddie Hold on August 5, 2013 at 9:42 am

Mobile phone trade-ins have rapidly moved from being an obscure option to one that is front and center at the major carriers. The shift comes as the carriers look to move away from the subsidy model – led by T-Mobile’s “Uncarrier” initiative, but also by the increased demand for no-contract variations as the market hits a new level of maturity...

TRADE IN, TRADE UP, TRADE OUT: The Evolving Smartphone Trade-In Market

The smartphone trade-in market has moved from one of relative obscurity a year ago to become one of the most dynamic, leading tools that carriers and retailers use to drive new device sales. Unlike other markets that leverage trade-ins - such as other consumer electronics, or even car sales - the smartphone market is driven by multiple needs, including ensuring consumer loyalty to a carrier and potentially to a specific OEM’s brand, and to ensure that they have the best possible phone to support the carrier’s network goals.

Droid Does Miracast, What’s That?

by John Buffone on July 24, 2013 at 5:19 pm

This week Verizon and Motorola introduced their new family of Droid phones – the Mini, Ultra, and Maxx. This generation of Droid phones includes the kind of spec upgrades expected in a high-end smartphones. For the most part, all phones in the series have the same hardware such as 2GB of RAM and a 10 mega-pixel camera. Notably different, though, is the 4.3-inch screen in the Mini, the thin form factor of the Ultra (which excludes the wireless charging to reduce the thickness), and the mammoth 3,500 mAh, 48-hour battery in the Maxx.

Drowning Phones, and Other Summer Perils

by Eddie Hold on July 8, 2013 at 11:51 am

I’m not an easy-going smartphone user. I seem to make a habit of breaking them one way or another, and never in a typical “whoops I dropped it on the floor” kind of way. I’m more the “huh, why did that fall off” or “where are my shorts anyway” kind of smartphone abuser. And summer time is when I’m more likely to have problems, not least of which is the perennial fear of dunking my phone in water, be it the ocean, a swimming pool, or even a large puddle (it finally stopped raining on the East Coast folks!).

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