HDTV adoption has more than tripled over the last five years, with three-fourths of American households now owning at least one high-definition TV set and 51% of U.S. homes owning at least two, according to a survey by Leichtman Research Group.
Over all, about 38% of all U.S. households now have multiple HDTV sets, up from 26% two years ago and 5% of all households five years ago, LRG said. About 59% of TV sets in HD households are HDTVs.
About 22% of all households purchased a new TV set in the past 12 months, with a mean average reported purchase price of $680. That’s about 30% less than five years ago, according to LRG. In the next 12 months, 14% of U.S. households plan to purchase a new TV set.
HDTV ownership remains skewed toward higher-income homes: 84% of households with annual incomes over $50,000 have an HDTV, compared with 73% of those with annual income between $30,000 and $50,000 and 56% of those with annual income under $30,000.
Channel counts have increased as well: Among pay TV customers, the reported mean average number of channels of HD programming now is 77, up slightly from 75 a year ago. That's up from 63 two years ago and 29 five years ago as measured on previous LRG surveys.
Meanwhile, only about 6% of all U.S. households currently have an HDTV set that is 3D-capable, and among those 41% do not watch any content in 3D, LRG found.
The LRG study is based on a telephone survey of 1,252 adults 18 and older living in the continental U.S. It was conducted in December 2012 and has a statistical margin of error of 2.8%.
