In a study conducted by NPD Group with over 4,000 participants, only 47 percent of home entertainment devices, such as Blu-ray players, gaming consoles, smart TVs and streaming media devices are connected to the Internet. Results of the study also determined that 40 percent of connected televisions are used to watch Netflix content, with other video sites such as YouTube following at 17 percent, and Hulu at 11 percent.

“That’s a problem for electronics device manufacturers and content owners who are hoping that hardware in homes will become the next big platform for generating revenue for their movies, TV shows, music and games,” reports Variety. “While the digital dollars have been adding up over the last several years, significant growth will depend on more consumers accessing entertainment online in their homes.”

“Content usage remains dominated by Netflix and YouTube,” notes John Buffone, director, devices, NPD Connected Intelligence. “An opportunity for digital distribution lies in enticing consumers to plug in to the Internet and download the apps available on devices they already own.”

The NPD Group also found that most online streaming is through gaming consoles and media players, with smart TVs ranking the lowest. While the connectivity may currently be low, NPD expects consumers to increase the amount of devices they use with their Internet services as more products are introduced into the market.

“While there are more Blu-ray disc players installed and connected to the Internet than streaming media players such as Apple TV and Roku, we expect that to change in the next year,” said Buffone. “Streaming media players will exceed the number of installed and Internet connected Blu-ray players in 2014.”