Ownership of streaming media boxes and sticks has increased 10-fold in just four years, but consumers of such devices aren't offsetting any time they'd spend watching broadcast TV, according to a new report from market research firm GfK.
GfK's findings indicate viewers who had fallen out of love with broadcast TV or never cared for it are consuming TV shows and movies via streaming hardware. Approximately 19 percent of TV viewers own a Roku, Google Chromecast of Apple TV -- that figure was two percent in 2010.
For owners of streaming hardware, the device becomes the primary means for viewing TV programming during prime time hours, says David Tice, senior vice president at GfK.
"[A] positive note for linear networks is that digital media player users don't perceive their use as cannibalizing their regular TV viewing," says Tice.
GfK reports between 43 and 50 percent of streaming hardware owners use their devices as a compliment to broadcast TV, while 31 to 42 percent use the product as a replacement for linear TV services. Those percentages vary based on brand of the device, according to GfK.
While the cord-cutting may be starting to draw blood from the massive cable industry, network TV stations are benefiting from swarms of new viewers. About 21 to 36 percent of streaming hardware owners reported they started watching network TV programming only after picking up a device capable of delivering services from the likes of Hulu and Netflix.
GfK also found Roku still holds the largest share of the market for streaming devices. Roku has a six percent share of TV in U.S. households, Chromecast holds a five percent slice, Apple TV has a four percent stake and both Boxee and Amazon's Fire TV have established a one percent place.
Amazon has been aggressively working to drive adoption of its Fire TV box and its Fire TV Stick. The e-commerce giant sold out of the newly released Fire TV Sticks after marking the devices down from $40 to $20 for Prime users - Amazon expects to restock at around Jan. 15, 2015.
Meanwhile, Roku and Google have been cutting prices on streaming sticks for the holidays. The Chromecast was marked down from $35 to $23 and the Roku sliced $10 off its $50 Streaming Stick.
