Monday February 27, 2012 – Shelby Cunningham
The amount of time game console owners spend watching streaming video through their consoles is increasing. It only makes sense that this shift would happen -- the shift to using multipurpose devices to control the living room entertainment choices. It also makes sense that consumers access video streaming on the game console.
Gamers are familiar with the interface of their chosen game consoles, and as we know, the user interface is critical when it comes to winning consumers over. STB, TV, Blu-ray and media streamer makers have been struggling to come up with the perfect user interface that integrates programming from multiple sources, and so far no one has fully succeeded.
And what are console owners watching? Well, paid streaming services like Hulu Plus and Netflix. That’s right; they’re paying for the content they’re watching. About 24 million people worldwide are currently paying for an internet video streaming subscription service. This number, which includes non-console as well as console subscribers, will only increase, doubling over the next 4 years. And this doesn’t even count the number of videos that are purchased directly from the PlayStation and Xbox stores.
While the PC may foster illegal downloads due to ease of access, the more closed game console environment encourages consumers to buy subscription services they can enjoy on any screen. And while gaming will remain the top feature for game consoles, video streaming has proven itself to be a strong second.
