Interactive TV and Mobile Devices

65% of US internet users wanted to connect their TV to the internet in 2009, a 7% point increase over 2008, according to the fourth edition of Deloitte's "State of the Media Democracy".. Web users across all generations increasingly wanted to watch online content, as well as content on their PC, on traditional television screens. Even among matures, nearly half were ready for internet-enabled TV sets.

US internet users who would like to connect their TV to the internet by generation, 2006-2009 (% of respondents):
- Millennials (14-26): 64% in 2006 / 71% on 2007 / 70% in 2008 / 74% in 2009
- Generation X (27-43): 52% / 66% / 61% / 71%
- Boomers (44-62): 40% / 49% / 51% / 59%
- Matures (63-75): 29% / 35% / 40% / 46%
TOTAL (14-75): 47% / 58% / 58% / 65%

Live TV remained the most popular way for respondents to watch their favourite shows, though 4% reported watching on free online sites such as Hulu and TV.com, and 3% watched online on the TV show's Website.

Overall, internet users were watching significantly more TV in 2009 than the year before, at nearly 18 hours per week. Millennials increased their television viewing the most, from 10.5 hours weekly last year to 15 hours in 2009.

Television also held sway as the advertising medium with the most impact on internet users' buying decisions, with its power about equal across generations. The influence of online ads was significantly smaller, but varied more by age.

By 2013, more than a third of all TV sets sold in the US will be internet-enabled. Several models are already on the market, and online publishers are racing to develop TV widgets to lure consumers to their streaming content. (eMarketer, December 2009)

Approximately 2.5 million broadband households in the US and Canada are ready to purchase an internet-connected TV if priced at a $100 premium over regular TVs, according to Parks Associates. This figure translates into $250 million in additional revenues for the consumer electronics industry. (Parks Associates, March 2009)