Latest news and insights from this week

The CES 2023, the biggest tech show, which officially opens in Las Vegas on Thursday, sets the stage for the many devices that consumers will be holding in 2023. We’ll get an early look at the newest innovations in TVs, computers, beneficial (and occasionally intrusive) smart home devices, and a wide range of phones, monitors, automobiles, and smart toilets in between on the show.

From Halo, a baby wearable that monitors movement, rollover, skin temperature, and heart rate. When you can’t walk, 10,000 steps a day may seem difficult, but it’s necessary to set goals, according to Aeolus Robotics, which created the humanoid robot Aeo, which is intended to assist in hospitals and schools by performing basic patrols, bringing food, and sanitising. Evidently, it can take selfies as well.

Every year at CES, a variety of innovative smart home gadgets are introduced, including Alexa-enabled toilets and intelligent showers, lights, and door locks. (You can speak to your toilet, yes.) And while a wide variety of smart home devices will undoubtedly be seen this year, the biggest change is that they should start cooperating. Click here to read more.

With the announcement that its streaming business has hit a new milestone in terms of active accounts and its highest-ever streaming hours, Roku has experienced a lift in the new year. With total streaming hours through the Roku interface rising by 19% in 2022, the secular shift in watching habits from linear to streaming is progressing quickly. Globally, streaming hours increased by 19% year over year to 23.9 billion in the fourth quarter and 87.4 billion in total in 2022.

The 70 million milestone was announced the same week that Roku unveiled its initial collection of branded smart TVs, which are slated to launch in the United States this spring.

Roku and Amazon are the market leaders for streaming devices, while Samsung, Vizio, and LG have dominated the TVOS smart TV market in the United States. However, according to Parks Associates statistics, while the use of streaming devices has plateaued, smart TV adoption is increasing in the United States. Click here to read more.

A partnership between Paramount and Delta, which was announced earlier today, will transform the in-flight experience for millions of passengers. While in the air, all Delta SkyMiles Members will have access to free, quick Wi-Fi and Paramount+.

Beginning in the spring, Delta loyalty members will get exclusive access to a free trial of the Paramount+ Premium service, which offers a wealth of popular content like breaking news, championship sports, and a tonne of entertainment.

Jeff Shult, chief strategy officer and chief business development officer of Paramount Streaming, claims that he has kept some of his start-up mentality throughout all the growth and change in order to keep Paramount unique. When it comes to deal-making, “Paramount adds a unique level of imagination and ambition, and we aren’t content unless we are completing transactions that are unusual and differentiated from others,” he claims.

By the end of 2023, fast, free Wi-Fi will be available on all of Delta’s aircraft, providing customers even more opportunities to enjoy their next travel. Along with other premium collaborations that incorporate customers’ most beloved brands into their journey, Paramount+ will supplement Delta’s award-winning onboard experience with unlimited access to the complete Paramount+ collection, including live events and championship sports. Click here to read more.

Over the holiday season, viewers and listeners came in record numbers to BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds, with millions also tuning in to BBC TV and BBC Radio. The number of times that programmes were streamed on iPlayer throughout the festive fortnight of 20 December to 2 January was higher this year than it was previous year, with the largest increases year over year of at least 25% occurring on 23 December, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day.

The most-watched shows included EastEnders, Call the Midwife, The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse (shown), The Traitors, and Sam Ryder Rocks New Year’s Eve.

Between December 20 and January 2, BBC Sounds saw a record 57.7 million plays of all content, helped by the release of three new Miss Marple tales, the new drama The Dark Is Rising, and the highly successful Christmas Sounds music offer. Click here to read more.

The Communications Authority Agcom of Italy has released a report that details the media and telecom landscape as of September 30, 2022. One of its main conclusions is that, when compared to the same month in 2021, the Italian SVOD sector fell by 2% in September 2022. (down 287,000 to 15.3m).

The situation was better during the first nine months of 2022, with all of the major platforms posting growth. Agcom also gave an update on the market for traditional linear TV. When compared to the same month in 2021, average watching in September 2022 (7.91 million) dropped by 0.58 million (-3.0%).

Pubcaster Rai topped the charts in the first nine months of the year with 3.16 million viewers (38.0% share), followed by commercial competitor Mediaset with 3.07 million (37.0%). The difference between the two has been closing, with Mediaset’s networks losing viewers more swiftly than Rai’s. Click here to read more.