IHS: smart TV shipments exceed 100m units in 2015

For the first time global smart TV shipments exceeded 100 million units in 2015, according to new stats by IHS.

The research firm said that in the fourth quarter alone 34.2 million smart TVs were shipped, accounting for 48.5% of all TVs sent out.

IHS predicts that smart TV shipments will continue to grow at a “more gradual rate” in the coming years, reaching 109 million units in 2016 and 134 million units in 2020.

“Consumers increasingly regard smart functions as essential. The market dynamic has shifted from seeding the market to self-sustaining demand for built-in internet streaming functions,” said IHS Technology principal analyst, Paul Gray.

Last year more than 75% of televisions in China were shipped with smart functionality, while the popularity of the feature in North America surged from 36% to 48%, according to IHS.