The connected TV platform market remains concentrated among relatively few players, with the Roku OS and Samsung Tizen OS leading the group at 28% and 23%, respectively, according to the latest Parks Associates’ Streaming Video Tracker report.
Amazon Fire TV, LG webOS, and Vizio SmartCast are the middle-level players. Apple tvOS, gaming consoles, and Android TV hold smaller shares.
The Parks Associates report said the research illustrates the centrality of connected TV platform ecosystems. These platforms influence content distribution, advertising revenue, and consumer engagement across the connected TV market. The growing use of artificial intelligence (AI) for search and personalization leads Parks to conclude that the importance of platform ecosystems will grow in the coming years.
The Parks Associates connected TV report identified four trendlines:
- There is platform concentration in which a small number of operating systems support a majority of connected television usage. This limits distribution for platforms without strong distribution partners.
- Samsung continues to have a strong installed base and Roku has grown slightly. Overall, though, the platform rankings remain consistent.
- Advertising control: Leading platforms manage the key elements — ad inventory, data collection and targeting — that control monetization across the ecosystem.
- The TV operating system plays a key role in recommendations, search, user experience, and viewing behavior.
“Control of the platform layer is central to competition in the connected TV market,” Michael Goodman, Parks Associates’ director of entertainment, said in a press release about the report. “Operating systems determine what content consumers see, how services are positioned, and how advertising is delivered.”
Content delivery network provider Netskrt’s “State of the ISP Survey,” released in January, found that live sporting events are the global infrastructure’s most daunting streaming challenge. The biggest worry, the research showed, is traffic generated by American football.
Almost eight in ten survey respondents (78%) said sports cause them the most concern related to streaming reliability. Of these, 70% pointed to American football as the most challenging sport to deliver. International football (soccer) is quickly approaching similar levels.
