Personal Viewers Report Released

Personal viewers (head-mounted displays) create a large virtual image from a tiny microdisplay. They have been in the market for over 10 years, have enjoyed slow but steady growth, but they have not broken out from their niche status. But the market dynamics for mobile video and hence, personal viewers, is changing rapidly. As a result, Insight Media is now offering a new report called Personal Viewers: Poised for Growth, authored by McLaughlin Consulting Group.

The 252-page report is a must read for anyone interested in this market segment including microdisplay providers, personal viewer manufacturers, cellphone/PDA makers, and cellphone and mobile video service providers. Technology, ergonomics and styling of personal viewers have advanced, and most importantly, personal viewers are available at much lower prices, such that they are now very viable options for mobile video viewing. But anyone interested in this segment needs to understand the status of development, trends in technology, drivers for adoption and the timing of development. It is vital for product and technology planners to understand when personal viewers are available, when the use models and business models are mature and when they should make strategic investments in this market. This report provides this information for decision makers.

The rapid proliferation of mobile video infrastructure worldwide and the emergence of QVGA video platforms like the iPod and the soon-to-be released iPhone, are creating a large demand for QVGA-quality video content and platforms. Most platforms will feature direct-view displays, but a personal viewer offers the benefits of a large screen in a pocketable form factor. Higher resolution game platforms can also offer a great opportunity for personal viewers. The main challenge will be to create industry and user awareness of the benefits of these personal viewers.

As a result, this report highlights the need for the industry to educate consumers on the benefits of personal viewers. By riding the coattails of growing enthusiasm for mobile video, and developing marketing programs for consumer adoption of personal viewers, the report finds the market opportunity for personal viewers could reach $1B by 2010. But a lot rides on success in the education/marketing campaign. If it is not effective, the market potential will only reach $150M by 2010. Consequently, the report focuses a great deal of analysis on ways to make the personal viewers segment successful over the next 4-5 years.

Key highlights include:

Forecasts through 2010 with detail by market and product type including units and sales value for personal displays and for the derived market for microdisplays
Forecasts for two scenarios - Base Case (organic growth) and Upside (effective consumer marketing)
Pricing for personal displays and microdisplays through 2010
Detailed analysis of the five key success factors for personal displays - the Five C's - Cost/Performance, Control Interface/Cabling, Comfort, Content and Channels.
Detailed quantitative evaluation of key comfort parameters with review and summary of personal display comfort studies done over the past several years
Analysis of each consumer application including Personal Video Viewers, Toy Viewers, Gaming Viewers, Data+ Viewers, Sports Helmet Navigators and Navigation/Phone text display sunglasses
Company profiles for 31 personal display companies
Three appendices provide detailed analysis of personal display system basics, personal viewer price points, and study methodology

New for the 2006 Report:
The study incorporates a number of improvements in scope and coverage compared to the 2005 report, including:

Forecast by military, corporate, prosumer and consumer markets
Detailed forecast of consumer sales by application/product
Analysis of the consumer use model for personal viewers
Forecast of the adoption sequence for personal viewers by application under two scenarios
- Base Case (organic growth case)
- Upside scenario (cost-effective marketing and promotion of personal viewers by companies other than Apple Computer)
Discussion of scenario where Apple enters the market with their own personal viewer
Strategies for cost-effective marketing of personal viewers
In-depth review of the five key personal viewer success factors
Forecast by type of personal viewer
Reviews of four of the latest consumer personal viewers
- Icuiti iWear
- MicroOptical myvu
- i-O Displays iTheater
- Oriscape Cyberman GVD310A
Competitive positioning of companies by market
Forecast of microdisplay demand by technology, breaking out single-crystal silicon (SCS) technology for the first time
Detailed analysis of comfort parameters and specific comfort vulnerabilities and requirements for personal displays
Analysis of potential hurdles or obstacles to success
Streamlined graphical company profiles

For more details on the scope of the report including the table of contents, visit: http://www.insightmedia.info/reports/2006pv.php.

The price is $5000 for a multi-user, single-site license. Bound, color hardcopy is available for an additional $250.

For More Info Contact Dian Mecca, 203-831-8464, dian@insightmedia.info

About Insight Media

Insight Media (www.insightmedia.info) is a leading publishing and consulting firm focused on the display industry. With its core team of world-class display experts, Insight Media tracks the technology, components, products, markets, applications, manufacturing and business aspects of consumer and professional display markets. The company publishes daily and monthly news and analysis as well as in-depth annual technology/market reports. It also hosts industry conferences, provides strategic and tactical consulting services and offers industry education via webinars and on-site seminars.

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