Dallas, TX–Sony’s popular PlayStation Portable (PSP) has not yet become an immediate threat to hard-drive-based portable video devices, according to new data.
Parks Associates’ upcoming report Portable Multimedia Players: Analysis and Forecasts shows the PSP still appeals to mainly gaming-oriented consumers. Among PSP intenders, the top factors influencing their interest were graphics (34 percent), gaming capabilities (29 percent), and an extensive game catalog (29 percent), all gaming-related product attributes. Only 6 percent ranked video playback as the main extra feature driving their interest, whereas significantly higher percentages of intenders cited features such as wireless connectivity (17 percent), a hard drive (19 percent), and TV connectivity (20 percent) as most desirable.
“Gamers’ enthusiasm for the PSP hasn’t spilled over to consumers who like video on the go,” said Harry Wang, research analyst at Parks Associates. “This news is good for manufacturers of hard-drive-based portable video players, who have been concerned the PSP would adversely affect demand for their products.”
The PSP could become a bigger threat, according to Wang, depending on how quickly Sony can build a sizeable library of video content for this platform. But the PSP is just one of many challenges confronting the companies in this market.
“Portable video players face additional adoption hurdles, including price, content availability, and competition from smartphones or multimedia PDAs,” Wang said.
Portable Multimedia Players: Analysis and Forecasts probes market demand for portable multimedia players, evaluates product and pricing strategies of existing brands, analyzes market drivers and barriers, and estimates PMP’s adoption rates and market potential over the next five years.
For additional information, visit www.parksassociates.com.
