Providing market intelligence for more than 35 years

In The News

How Many Consumers Actually Have VR Headsets?

Parks Associates released new consumer research this week showing that 2 percent of U.S. broadband households, or 2.3 million households, own a virtual reality headset. The survey of 10,000 U.S. broadband households reportedly reveals that 5 percent of U.S. broadband households plan to buy a VR headset in 2016, an increase from only 1 percent who made a purchase the year prior.

“The big change in VR for 2016 has been the availability or pending availability of VR headsets from companies such as Facebook (Oculus Rift), Google (Google Cardboard) and HTC (Vive). Sony PlayStation VR is expected to be released in October. We expect gamers to be the initial market for VR,” Barbara Kraus, Parks Associates director of research, says. “VR is an immersive experience, and more is better for gamers – more immersion, better sound, better graphics, and more players. The mass market is more likely to adopt mobile VR, which will be less expensive and uses a tool – the smartphone – that the majority of U.S. consumers own.”

From the article "How Many Consumers Actually Have VR Headsets?" by Laura Hamilton.

Previously In The News

IRobot faces a murky future amid rising Roomba competitors

The company is still “number one,” said Elizabeth Parks, president of market research firm Parks Associates in Dallas. But it’s a shaky number one. Parks estimates that iRobot had nearly two-thirds of...

Energy, security, automation: Converging into peace of mind

Parks Associates latest research shows 70% of US internet households report spending $100 or more per month on their electricity and 62% think the electricity costs are too high, an increase of eight...

The Future Of Building Homes Is Now Intertwined With The Auto World

Research group Parks Associates reports that 35% of households are familiar with the potential for EVs charging at home to automatically minimize costs by charging when rates are low, and 51% say its...

Parks: Fixed Wireless Sees Strong Customer Price Satisfaction

Subscribers of fixed wireless access (FWA) from mobile network operators (MNOs) are more satisfied with the price of service than fiber or cable subscribers, according to fixed wireless satisfaction r...