HT Market to Nearly Double in Five Years - According to a new report from Parks Associates on high end entertainment systems, the home theater market will be opened up to more people at low-to-medium income levels due to the adoption of networking technologies and lower-priced flat screens and other components. Revenues in the U.S. for installed home theaters and multiroom audio systems is expected to grow from $6 billion last year to more than $11 billion by 2012, with the number of new installations growing by 67% over the same period. The report said that digital content has approached the performance and quality of analog media with the added flexibility only digital offers. Reduced costs and advancements in wireless and powerline networking technologies are occurring in the retrofit market, and PC-based systems from computer companies will compete for customers who traditionally bought systems from AV manufacturers. Currently the majority of high end AV customers are wealthy, and most installed entertainment systems are sold as part of new homes or homes going thru major renovation.  This will change as builders, installers and integrators become more accepting of “no-new-wires” technologies.

Replacing Lost or Broken Electronics Parts - The explosion in the use of mobile electronic items such as cell phones, iPods, remotes and similar devices insures that eventually there is going to be concern about broken and lost items, especially if there are children in the household. A new type of service known as parts locators are addressing this situation. Online companies such as ServicePower, National Service Alliance and ServiceBench are helping to coordinate repair calls of independent repair technicians and making it easier for manufacturers and retailers to find the proper technicians. Often  a repair firm has had to send out a service technician two or more times to a customer’s home to repair an item - the first time to diagnose the problem, the second to make the repair after the proper part has been located and obtained.  These companies can coordinate a single repair visit with the arrival of the parts 70% of the time, dropping labor costs. The firms’ B-to-B Internet transactions in the spare parts business have made it easier for consumers to locate replacement lids, chargers and remote controls, and for repair technicians to find obscure parts on a moment’s notice. 

Partsearch Technologies of NYC has compiled an online catalog of over eight million spare parts for electronics, appliances and other items, offering consumers and repair people a single place to find obscure parts and replacement batteries. An industry expert observed that as technology gets more complex and consumers need more help with their devices, there will be more demand for repair services, especially as the age of the average user gets lower and lower.  Other problems in the whole repair scene persist though: the CEO of Crutchfield said, “I find I still need a tour guide when I try something on my own.”  It is frustrating to find that many electronic gadgets are provided without straightforward, simple, step-by-step Quick Start instructions, and their web sites are of little help either.