Intel Ditching Smart TV Business
It appears that Intel will be turning its back on the once-praised Google TV package.
One the eve of the announcement of an Android Market version of Google TV, market research firm IHS released some numbers that show that Intel may not be as committed to the smart TV market anymore as it announced back in 2010.
Wrapped up in a group of new entries in the TV chip supplier segment, Intel had less than 2 percent market share in the first half of 2011. According to IHS, Intel has begun shifting its resources away from the TV market and is now focusing on mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones. The TV SoC market is dominated by Mstar with a 39 percent share and Mediatek with 12 percent.
One of the problems Intel and other new suppliers may be facing is that the term smart TV isn't defined yet and that, despite a TV market volume of hundreds of millions of units each year, there are long replacement cycles and the smart TV just has not caught on yet. IHS said that it will take several more years until the smart TV will hit substantial volumes - and account for 65 percent market share by 2015.
“In a television semiconductor market characterized by entrenched suppliers and weak near-term growth prospects, Intel was facing enormous challenges in trying to establish itself as a competitor,” said Randy Lawson, principal analyst for display and consumer electronics at IHS. “And with the first-generation Google TV products proving unsatisfactory given their slow sales, it’s no surprise that Intel is moving away from the television SoC market.” There was no information how Intel will react to the Google TV upgrade.
However, it is already clear that it will take much more than a sophisticated chip to break into the TV market as even Broadcom hinted that it would be leaving the TV chip because of the rough competitive environment.
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Douglas Perry was a freelance writer for Tom's Hardware covering semiconductors, storage technology, quantum computing, and processor power delivery. He has authored several books and is currently an editor for The Oregonian/OregonLive.
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ikyung Smart move. TVs usually last an average household 10-15years. Longest refresh cycle out of any other electronics. It will be another decade before average households replace their 1080p TVs to 2k.Reply -
sgtopmobile SMART TV? what about ALL IN ONE TV!! can you imagine??? XBOX 360-like hardware to play games, a computer, a camera, windows/mac/linux,glass free 3D!!!!! ...... too bad apple already patented, and they will sue anyone who names it, crap i need a lawyer.....Reply -
toastninja17 Honestly...good. Intel just needs to focus on making the world's most epic processor chipsets.Reply
I do think that the concept of a "smart tv" has the potential to catch on quicker than 3D has (or did..).
It's more function than fashion, which I think is more widely acceptable. -
spentshells I agree with toastninja intel needs to stay the center of thier own universe instead of being a minor player in someone else'sReply -
billybobser unless a tv does more than a tv, you're not gonna buy a new one unless the old one breaksReply
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youssef 2010 Intel doesn't quit easily. The fact that they quit the smart TV business speaks volumes about the challenges they faced. Or maybe they just compared problems to benefits and concluded that their best interest is to invest elsewhere.Reply -
kyee7k Thanks to Apple, voice-activated TVs and toasters :D are the next big thing--at least IMO.Reply -
alidan ikyungSmart move. TVs usually last an average household 10-15years. Longest refresh cycle out of any other electronics. It will be another decade before average households replace their 1080p TVs to 2k.Reply
for old crts maybe, but we are getting close to 5-6 years on out plazma, and it REALLY needs to be replaced.
pluss what does a smart tv do? deliver services to your tv such as 1080p video off youtube and netflix? 1080p isnt going anywhere anytime soon.
a smart tv will last a hell of allot longer than most people think. at worst, it could be a modular device that plugs into the tv, think a smartphone sized card, that way you keep the on the fly upgrade ability, and you can get more content as needed. -
zaho0006 Another issue is that even if you are buying a new TV you can buy a streamer box that will typically do significantly more for much less.Reply
I bought a 32" samsung with a WDTV live+ for under $400, where the cheapest comparable smart TV was $800. -
hiryu jacekringI bought my last flat screen about 1.5 years ago. Don't plan on replacing it for at least 8 years, unless it breaks. It's a 1080p 120hz 58" flat screen, I mean why would I buy a new one anytime soon?I don;t think the current TV will last that long, the more electronic stuff people put into TV means more breakable components and thus the chance of breaking one of them is higher. So the new TV probably would not last as long as before.Reply