Orders For Communications Gear Up
January 2009
Orders for manufactured goods made to last for three years or longer fell less than most economists had expected in November. Orders for high-technology equipment were mixed based on the results for the three subcategories below, with the communications sector the only one to record a gain in both orders and shipments from both the month and year before. Inventories were mostly higher. (Figures are seasonally adjusted and in billions of dollars.)
| Category |
Nov. '08 |
Oct. '08 |
Sept. '08 |
Nov. '07 |
1-Mo. Chg. |
1-Yr. Chg. |
| COMPUTERS |
| New Orders |
$2.969 |
$2.426 |
$2.721 |
$3.609 |
22.4% |
-17.7% |
| Shipments |
$2.419 |
$2.760 |
$2.701 |
$3.541 |
-12.4% |
-31.7% |
| Ratio of Orders to Shipments |
1.23 |
0.88 |
1.01 |
1.02 |
39.6% |
20.4% |
| Inventories |
$1.217 |
$1.179 |
$1.312 |
$1.468 |
3.2% |
-17.1% |
| COMMUNICATIONS |
| New Orders |
$5.741 |
$5.699 |
$5.207 |
$5.288 |
0.7% |
8.6% |
| Shipments |
$5.719 |
$5.458 |
$5.649 |
$5.670 |
4.8% |
0.9% |
| Ratio of Orders to Shipments |
1.00 |
1.04 |
0.93 |
0.93 |
-3.9% |
7.6% |
| Inventories |
$9.789 |
$9.806 |
$9.649 |
$9.198 |
-0.2% |
6.4% |
| COMPONENTS |
| New Orders |
$3.516 |
$3.548 |
$3.846 |
$4.106 |
-0.9% |
-14.4% |
| Shipments |
$3.573 |
$3.727 |
$3.847 |
$4.011 |
-4.1% |
-10.9% |
| Ratio of Orders to Shipments |
0.98 |
0.95 |
1.00 |
1.02 |
3.4% |
-3.9% |
| Inventories |
$6.759 |
$6.700 |
$6.666 |
$6.627 |
0.9% |
2.0% |
Source: San Jose Mercury News 2009, U.S. Dept. of Commerce
It’s good to know that our sector continues to show gains in these challenging economic times.
Source: MRG, Inc., January 2009 IPTV Bulletin
{Note: analyst comments are italicized}
Swisscom Investment in Firecomms
January 2009
Swisscom invested US$5 million in Firecomms, the maker of plastic optical fiber(POF), which seeks to rival powerlines, coax, copper wire and telephone wire as home networking technologies.
Source: MRG, Inc., January 2009 IPTV Bulletin
Analyst Comment: 8 Reasons Why Standalone Internet TV Will Not Succeed
January 2009
Here are 8 reasons to believe Internet TV sets will not be commonplace at least for 5-10 years:
• It takes 8 years on average to replace the main TV in the living room, making it unlikely that Internet TVs (with hard drives and added technology) will be economical replacement products anytime soon.
• Internet TVs are already priced as high end models, putting them out of reach for the average households.
• The clutter factor of Internet TV may drive people away, back to managed services that avoid random (pop-up) ads and maintain quality.
• Lack of universal standards may inhibit worldwide developments; much rides on Yahoo and how easily it can enter International markets.
• Browsers on Internet TV sets cannot rely on a keyboard(1); since widgets would need to work seamlessly with the remote control, and with the EPG of the local IPTV or Cable or Satellite Operators, many custom interfaces would be necessary.
• Widget software is open, which may lead to quality and security issues.
• There will soon be a lot of competition available from hybrid STBs that will discourage people from using a separate Internet TV service like the Widget Channel.
• There already is significant competition from OTT Internet STBs like VUDU, Roku, Apple TV, Blockbuster/MediaPoint(2) and Xbox which can provide HD and SD movie services, sports events and the like.
This is an excerpt from a larger article on Internet TV at CES.
(1) See why Intel finally halted the Viiv product experiment.
(2) By 2Wire.
Source: MRG, Inc., January 2009 IPTV Bulletin
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