Europe is leading the world in the fast-growing digital terrestrial platform (DTT), though other regions are gaining momentum, reports In-Stat. With analog shutoffs (ASOs) approaching in North America and Western Europe, strong drivers for digital terrestrial set top boxes are on the horizon as consumers transition from analog to digital.

While other regions are further behind the digital curve, actions are being taken to expand digital services; whether it is formally adopting a standard (e.g. Honduras and ATSC) or anticipating DTT launches (e.g. Brazil), digital is becoming a global change.

Recent research by In-Stat found the following:

• Total unit shipments of digital terrestrial set top boxes will eclipse 47 million in 2011.
• US converter boxes will hit the market in 2008. - Revenue will have a more subdued compound annual growth rate (18.2%) than unit sales growth, in large part, due to decreasing set top box prices.

The research, "World Report on Digital Terrestrial Set Top Boxesc, covers the global digital terrestrial television (DTT) set top box (STB) market. Five year unit sales and revenue forecasts from 2006 to 2011, for both standard- and high-definition (SD/HD) STBs are included. The research explores the European, North American, Asia/Pacific, and ROW (Latin America and MEA) regions-with country-specific analysis in the larger markets.