Study: Large Number of HD Owners Not Watching HD
And some don't even realize they're not.
By Swanni
That's according to a new study from the Leichtman Research Group.
The company estimates that 53 percent of all HDTV households are watching high-def programming from a multi-channel provider such as cable or satellite.
And another four percent are watching broadcast HDTV using an antenna.
That leaves around 40 percent of high-def households that are not watching HD at all. Even worse news for the industry, about 20 percent of HDTV owners think they are watching HD when they are actually not.
Leichtman's press release on its new study, which was released today, does not offer reasons for why a high-def owner would not watch HD programming.
However, previous studies have indicated that some HD owners are content with watching standard-def DVDs on their sets while others are not aware they need HD tuners to watch HD programming.
And, as Leichtman points out, many high-def owners think they are watching HD when they are not.
The company also found that about 25 percent of U.S. households now have at least one HDTV-capable set -- double the penetration of two years ago.
But consumer confusion over high-def still remains high, the study says. For instance, about 40 percent of HDTV owners believe that they now own High-Definition DVD players when the real number is less than five percent.
"The number of households with an HDTV has significantly increased in recent years, and LRG forecasts that over 85 million US households will have at least one HDTV by the end of 2012," said Bruce Leichtman, the company's president. "However, with the expansion of HDTV, there will need to be continued consumer education about high definition programming and products."
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Swanni (Phillip Swann) is
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