Home Networking as a Key Variable in Internet Appliance Growth: Consumer Study Points to Strong Link

DALLAS, February 4, 2000 – The adoption of home networking solutions will spur parallel growth in the acquisition of non-PC Internet appliances, according to the recent study Networks @ Home: Multiple-PC Households by Parks Associates. In this national survey of multiple-PC households, consumers with a home network are more likely than their non-networked counterparts to find utility in a portable device with Internet access (such as a "Web pad" or a mobile phone).

"This look at the early market for home networking shows a clear connection between broadband access and interconnectivity among PCs at home," said Kurt Scherf, Parks Associates’ Home Networking Analyst. "Now it appears likely that the acquisition of a home network will mean that consumers will move beyond PC connectivity and tie in numerous other platforms and devices into the two-way infrastructure."

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In the same way that broadband services will drive network adoption, the results of this survey indicate that network ownership will motivate the sale of Web appliances. Parks Associates surveyed 400 households surveyed for this study, and among those households with a network, 43% expressed interest in a portable device with Web access, while 36% expressed interest in a mobile phone with Web access. In both cases, the interest among non-networked households ranked at least ten percentage points lower.

"We are beginning to see how consumers will tie all this technology together, which provides both a pattern and a chronology to technology adoption in the home," said Brian Canny, analyst at Parks Associates. "As networking and broadband connections continue to infiltrate the home, the extensibility of the Internet will become more apparent to the consumer. From there, you will be able to draw a straight line between the presence of a network and the growth in Web-appliance acquisition."

Networks @ Home: Multiple-PC Households, a survey of 400 multiple-PC households, is currently available from Parks Associates. Parks Associates is launching a study of high-end entertainment households, which will be featured in the upcoming report Networks @ Home: High-End Entertainment Households. For information on sponsorship for either report, please contact Steve Harvey at 972-490-1113 or harvey@parksassociates.com.

About Parks Associates: Parks Associates is a Dallas, Texas-based market research firm specializing in emerging technologies and services for the home. Founded in 1986, Parks Associates provides primary and secondary research on home systems, in-home networks, home security, consumer electronics, telecommunications, Internet service, energy utility, and subscription TV industries. Parks Associates' clients include both Fortune 500 companies and small start-ups. Services include syndicated reports, multiclient studies, custom consulting, workshops, and conferences.

CABA (the Continental Automated Buildings Association) and Parks Associates will host CONNECTIONS 2000: "Advancing the Networked Home" in San Diego, California, from May 3-5, 2000. The fourth conference of its kind, CONNECTIONS 2000 will focus on the business, technical, and regulatory issues affecting the in-home network and residential gateway markets with key players from a variety of industries, including consumer electronics, computing, energy utility, and residential construction.

For more information, please visit www.caba.org  or www.parksassociates.com.