In-Stat announced that the hybrid Web-to-TV Set Top Box (STB) market will reach $1.3 billion (US) worldwide by 2014.

According to the statement, hybrid Web-to-TV Set Top Boxes bring a new set of Internet services to TV sets, by integrating Internet capability into cable, satellite, telcoTV (IPTV) and digital terrestrial set top boxes. Work is being done to create “hybrid” services that bring “apps” and “widgets” to TV programming.

According to the statement, recent In-Stat research also found:

* Hybrid-capable STBs are shipping today, but only a small percentage are using the capabilities.

* Digital terrestrial boxes will be the hybrid-box growth leader, with a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 42% between 2010 and 2014.

* Western Europe will be the hot bed for development of hybrid services and the leader for early hybrid STB shipments.

* Intel’s x86 Instruction Set promises to be a key enabler, as Adobe FLASH, Windows Media, Microsoft Silverlight, DiVX, and VP8 appear first on an x86 Instruction Set.

“TV programs have come to the Internet. Now, the Internet is coming back to TV, and savvy software engineers and smart TV producers are finding ways to create new ‘hybrid’ services that bring it all together,” says Gerry Kaufhold, Principal Analyst for In-Stat. “The set top box industry is scrambling to create designs that facilitate all these new features.”

For more information visit: www.instat.com