On a global basis, shipments of HD set-top boxes, HD camcorders, Blu-ray Disc players and video game consoles are expected to triple between now and 2012, as "HD becomes the ubiquitous video standard worldwide," according to iSuppli, a consultancy based in El Segundo, Calif. (Currently, the vast majority of HD products are in use in the U.S.)
Global shipments of "HD-capable" equipment will rise to 202 million units by 2012—up from under 69 million in 2008. The study finds that within three years an estimated 53 percent of STBs, camcorders, video-disc players and game consoles being shipped globally will be HD-capable (up from under 22 percent in 2008).
The rapidly growing list of HD content suppliers, along with the accelerating adoption rates of HD sets and STBs, "clearly indicates that HD video transmission and delivery are becoming major motivators for consumer adoption of newer technology television displays and playback/recording equipment," said iSuppli. "As the broadcast TV market inexorably moves to all-digital television formats, there is more incentive for the inclusion of HD support in consumer-electronics devices."
