Providing market intelligence for more than 35 years

In The News

Hollywood Turns the Page on the Metaverse – and Disney Just Got the Memo | Analysis

All the while, consumer interest never matched the industry’s passion for the technology. The pandemic might have seemed like a prime opportunity to plug in and disconnect, since actual reality didn’t have a lot going for it. But after a jump in 2021, VR headset sales fell 2% last year to $1.1 billion, according to the NPD Group — a far cry from the near-$100 billion market once forecast. Only one in seven households even had a VR headset in 2022, according to Parks Associates. That limited reach means limited appeal for mass-market entertainment distributors.
 
Sheer lack of interest may be the biggest factor holding VR back. A Parks Associates survey found that among consumers who hadn’t tried VR, 47% said the reason they hadn’t bought VR equipment is that they saw no use for it. Among those who had tried it, 37% cited the same reason. Far fewer people cited cost, discomfort or a lack of content as a barrier, suggesting that the problem with virtual reality can’t be solved merely by improving the technology or throwing money at creatives to build more VR experiences.
 
From the article, "Hollywood Turns the Page on the Metaverse – and Disney Just Got the Memo," by Owen Thomas.

Previously In The News

EVs Need Long-Term Love to Live Up to Their Engineering

A new survey from Parks Associates finds that “Inflation and interest rates are up, and consumers perceive electric vehicles as expensive, challenging to charge outside the home, and limited in range....

Save Money While Staying Connected. Here Are 8 Ways to Lower Your Internet Bill

For many Americans, the average cost of home internet is $63 a month, which might seem like a good deal. However, according to Parks Associates data from 2022, US households spend an average of $116 a...

Everyone's watching free TV

"Consumers are spending less, but rather than go without, many are using ad-based alternatives to save on costs," Sarah Lee, research analyst at Parks Associates, said in a report. Recent research...

Ring This Up: Smart Wearables Hitting Mainstream Status

Consumer adoption of smart wearables is now nearly half (48%) of U.S. Internet households, Kristen Hanich, director of research for Parks Associates, told a Connected Health Summit audience Thursday,...