According to MIC (Market Intelligence Center), an ICT industry research institute based in Taipei, due to continuing growth in the IPTV service market and continuing growth of contract-production orders released by major vendors, Taiwanese IP STB shipment volume is expected to hit 431,400 and 494,200 units respectively in the fourth quarter of 2006 and first quarter of 2007, representing year-on-year growth rates of 11.9% and 47.0%. For the full year 2006, Taiwanese IP STB shipment volume is expected to grow 47.7% to 1.46 million units, with shipment value rising 36.3% to US$154 million.

In order to provide A/V content different from existing paid TV services, large telecoms started commercial IPTV services starting in mid-2006. Prior to 2006 major telecom carriers cooperated with video equipment and middleware companies in carrying out IPTV (Internet Protocol TV) service testing on a small scale. Meanwhile, they upgraded their broadband networks, aiming to obtain a share in the paid TV service market via solid video service deployment. Following completion of testing and small-scale commercialization in the first half of 2006, many telecom carriers have started to carry out large-scale commercial deployment for IPTV services in the second half of the year, including AT&T and Verizon, and telecoms in Belgium, Germany, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, and Korea. This has led to evident growth in global IPTV subscribers and shipment of various kinds of IPTV equipment.

Taiwanese IP STB shipment volume in the third quarter of 2006 reached 353,000 units, representing year-on-year growth of 20.5%, with shipment value growing 10.6% year-on-year to approximately US$37.4 million.

Interactive IP STBs were still the mainstream product in the Taiwanese industry, boasting an 80% share of total shipment. Thanks to promotion of PVR (Personal Video Recorder) services by telecoms, shipment of IP STB bundled with hard disk drives was also on the rise, boosting ASP (Average Selling Price) of Taiwanese IP STBs. Western Europe was still the major market for Taiwanese IP STB makers, absorbing 48.2% of the total shipment. Meanwhile, Taiwanese makers continued to receive contract-production orders from Japanese and North American IPTV service providers and brand-name equipment vendors.

More information can be found in the following MIC report.  The Taiwanese IP STB Industry, 4Q 2006

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