There are more than 30 million connected televisions in use in the United Kingdom, close to 24 million set-top boxes, and a further 10 million plug-in devices. It is a fragmented picture, with no single platform having more than a quarter share of the market. A new report provides a snapshot of the connected television market by platform.
The Connected TV Platform Market is published by the United Kingdom communications regulator Ofcom. It draws on a range of market data, including research from Omdia.
Sky, Google and Android TV, and Samsung are the top three connected television platforms in the United Kingdom. They account for more than half the market between them.
They are led by Sky Q with its Entertainment OS, with a 24% market share, meaning that no platform has more than a quarter of the market.
Google and Android TV have a 14% market share, including 10% licensed to third parties. Google TV is available on Google Chromecast and the new Google Streamer, and on televisions from Sony, Philips, TCL, and Sharp. Android TV is available on Sony, Panasonic, Philips, TCL, Toshiba, TalkTalk, Humax, and NVIDIA.
Samsung with its Tizen operating system has a 13% market share. They are followed by LG WebOS with 8% of the market.
Amazon Fire OS has a 7% market share, available on Amazon Fire TV, Fire TV Stick, Fire TV Cube, and also on Panasonic and Toshiba televisions.
Virgin Media has a 5% share with its 360/V6 and Stream platforms.
These six main platforms account for over 70% of the United Kingdom market in 2024.
Roku has a 4% share in the United Kingdom, including on JVC and TCL branded televisions, while VIDAA from Hisense has 3% and Apple TV just 1%.
There is a large proportion of other platforms, at 18%, that includes users of Freeview, Freesat, and YouView.
Media providers generally have to reach distribution agreements with each of these platform providers to maximise the reach of their online services. These may either be on standard terms and conditions offered by some of the platforms or specially negotiated agreements.
The Ofcom report details some of the principles of these negotiations, noting that outcomes generally reflect the relative bargaining power between the parties.
“Our analysis of the commercial arrangements above suggests that content providers are generally able to distribute content through a range of connected TV platforms today,” Ofcom reports.
“However, we note that the opportunity to negotiate more favourable bespoke terms with platform operators, such as for enhanced prominence, is more commonly available to certain popular content providers. This could mean that other content providers, particularly those with a weaker bargaining position relative to the platforms, may find it more challenging to reach audiences online.”
Ofcom has responsibilities under the Media Act to monitor market developments and ensure the prominence of public service media.
www.ofcom.org.uk