Wireless Home Video Devices Become A 'Must-Have'

Wi-Fi has become the next "must- have" feature on entertainment devices: according to recent research it is no longer "a nice extra" but a function that consumers expect.
It is understood that almost 600 million wireless internet-connected devices will be in homes by 2015.
The research carried out by In-stat reveals that the popularity of over-the-top video has created a demand for Wi-Fi in the entertainment cluster of home living rooms.
Company’s like Amazon’s LoveFilm, Netflix and UltraViolet are creating increased demand for wireless entertainment devices.
Increasingly, home video entertainment devices such as digital TVs, Blu-ray players, game consoles, and all versions of set top boxes (STBs) are coming to the market Wi-Fi-connected, so the devices can connect to the web and to each other.
Digital TVs will reach a 40% WLAN-attach rate by 2015 it is predicted. Meanwhile researchers claim mobile hotspots will have an 802.11n attach rate of 98% by 2014 and over 28 million WLAN-enabled Blu-ray players will ship in 2013.
"Wi-Fi has moved from a nice-to-have feature to a must-have feature as it provides the connectivity necessary to support IP-based video content." said Frank Dickson, Vice President of Research.
"It is important to note though that Wi-Fi is growing from being simply about getting content from a network to devices, to sharing content between devices, as Wi-Fi evolves from being a network-centric connectivity standard to one that enables peer-to-peer connectivity. New innovations such as Wi-Fi Display and Wi-Fi Direct will fundamentally change the way that content is moved and shared in the home."
(LB)