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

Real-time Interactivity: the Missing Monetization Piece for Emerging Streaming Businesses

High operational costs, market saturation, and the constant need for fresh and original content strategies make it difficult for new entrants to carve out a niche or gain a foothold. Parks Associates...

AI: The Secret Weapon for FAST Channels Competing in a Crowded Market

According to research conducted by Parks Associates and SymphonyAI, almost 70% of content executives report that they evaluate data for each distribution service separately. From the article, "AI:...

EV Battery & Charging News: Parks Associates, Berger, Electrify America, Toyota, Blue Bird, Cummins, Sakuu, SK, bp Pulse, VW, QuantumScape & Panasonic Energy

New research from Parks Associates’ consumer study of 8,000 US internet households finds electric vehicle (EV) ownership has seen a slight decline, with 5%, or six million internet households, reporti...

Parks: Economics challenge household finances – and the entertainment industry

Streaming, meanwhile, is the leading choice for video entertainment today; today, 88% of US internet households subscribe to at least one OTT service, according to Parks Associates' most recent Video...