Ben Bajarin is the Director of Consumer Technology Analysis and Research at Creative Strategies, Inc, a technology industry analysis and market intelligence firm located in Silicon Valley.
Earlier this week I spoke at the Internet Retailer Conference and Exhibition. The topic I was asked to address was related to connected TV. More specifically I was addressing how the advent of Internet connected TV’s will drive new commerce opportunities called “t-Commerce” or commerce through the television.
My research in the area of connected TV dates back to early 2003. At the time the questions I was addressing were primarily around how to move digital media, like music and movies, from the PC to the TV. Now as things like Apple TV, Google TV, and Samsung’s Smart TV products enter the market an entirely new set of questions are being asked.
(LIST: Gadgets Then and Now)
There is a high degree of probability that the next TV you buy will be a connected Smart TV. My colleagues at Display Search project that in 2014 there will be 123 million connected TV’s sold worldwide. This next generation of TV’s will bring an entirely new, interactive, and social experience to audiences.
If we consider how much the Internet changed PC’s and drove new businesses, new experiences, and new levels of social interactions, it is only logical to assume that the same will be true with connected and smart TV’s.
What t-Commerce Means for You
It is important to note that when a device, appliance or other piece of electronics gets “smarter” it almost always means that it gets more personal and more useful. Therefore the premise for Smart TV is that TV will become more personal.
Consider this: Currently 24 minutes of every programming hour are commercials, most of them largely irrelevant to you the viewer. Imagine a world where commercials and product advertisements are more targeted and more personal to your specific interests.