• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, February 26, 2008

Home Theater Enroute to Mass Market

According to Parks Associates' new report and analysis of  high-end entertainment systems, total U.S. revenues for installed home theaters and multiroom audio systems will grow from $6 billion in 2007 to more than $11 billion by 2012.  The number of new installations are forecast to grow 67% over the same period, from 166,000 per year in 2007 to 277,000 by 2012.

Bill Ablondi, Director, Home Systems Research, Parks Associates, says "The high-end A/V market is in a major stage of transition. Digital content is approaching the... quality of analog media, with... added flexibility. Reduced costs... with advancements in wireless and powerline networking technologies are also growing the retrofit portion of the market... "

"Currently, the majority of high-end A/V customers are wealthy," Ablondi said. "In addition, most installed entertainment systems are sold into new homes or homes going through a major renovation. This mix will change as builders, installers, and integrators become more accepting of ‘no-new-wires' technologies."

Adoption of networking technologies will make installed home theaters and multiroom audio systems more affordable, opening up this market to more consumers at low-to-medium income level, concludes the report.

High-end Entertainment Systems: Analysis and Forecasts features surveys and research of principals in the home systems installation channel and updated forecasts for home theater, multiroom audio and media server systems, and home entertainment networks.

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