Parks Associates: 2011 Trends and 2012 Storylines

Media research and consulting firm Parks Associates, collected its thoughts on last year and the one coming up for its recent newsletter.  Here's some of their conclusions -

• Consumer viewing of online video dramatically increased in 2011, and will continue to grow in 2012.  The growth in 2012 will be driven by diffusion and use of mobile devices for watching digital video.
• In 2011, 12.7% of U.S. pay-TV subscribers dropped or downgraded their service.  This trend will continue in 2012, impacting revenues throughout the video content ecosystem, and forcing firms to explore new and creative ways to monetize content through VOD and multiscreen delivery.  By mid-2011, 80% of U.S. pay-TV subscribers could receive VOD on a non-TV screen at home.  Multiscreen options will continue to expand in 2012, and the impact on subscriber churn and business models will be clearer.
• Video, mobile, and broadband services will continue to grow, globally.  Hotbeds for growth in 2012 will be Latin America, Eastern Europe, and Asia, as services expand and competition helps to bring prices down.
• TVs and other connected devices will get smarter and more connected, driving sales. Broadband households in North America and Europe will average more than five "connectable" devices, and is likely to double by 2016, fueling digital media distribution.
• Smartphones and tablets will drive mobile data adoption, testing the network capacity and pricing power of network operators.  Consumer dissatisfaction with the caps and prices of monthly data plans will force operators to develop new approaches.  Tablets are expected to surpass PC's as the top driver of Internet traffic in the next few years.
• Second screen content and ad integration will take off in 2012, as consumers become more comfortable with personalized TV and online advertising (including targeted ads).
• 2011 saw more than 135 million people in the U.S. play at least one hour of games a month.  2012 will be a formidable year for mobile games, with the increased penetration of lower-priced tablets like the Kindle Fire.
• There is a huge opportunity for consumer and small-business oriented technical support services, with 2011 revenues of $16 billion expected to double by 2015.

Source -  Trends of 2011 and the Storylines for 2012,  Parks Points online newsletter