Market research firm, Infonetics Research (News - Alert) released excerpts from its Hybrid IP Set-Top Box Features and Vendor Leadership: Global Service Provider Survey. The goal of the survey was to capture service providers’ requirements for hybrid IP-based set-top boxes (STBs) to deliver video services. Infonetics gathered its data by interviewing purchase decision-makers at incumbent carriers from North America, EMEA, and Asia Pacific about preferred IP STB features, IP STB tuners, media sharing and home networking technologies, IP STB hard drive capacity, IP STB tuners, and their preferred manufacturers. Here are some of the results.

Among those surveyed, 94 percent use IP STBs to deliver their video services. When asked about IP STB applications, many responses were given. The survey however points to the top three, including video on demand (VOD), electronic program guide (EPG), and whole-home DVR. There also appears to be some storage fears with the shift in HD programming as 71 percent of operator respondents believe that more than 500G of hard drive capacity will be required by 2013. And as a final highlight Ethernet cables received high praise from respondents, whereas social media, such as Facebook (News - Alert) and Twitter, didn’t garner such a favorable opinion.

“In a change from the 2011 edition of our IP set-top box survey, Cisco is now perceived as the overall top IP set-top box supplier by operators, while Motorola (News - Alert) was top dog last year,” notes Jeff Heynen, the directing analyst for broadband access and video at Infonetics Research. “This is consistent with our set-top box market share reporting, where Cisco (News - Alert) has led in global IP STB revenue share for 4 straight quarters. Clearly Cisco’s efforts over the past year to expand its IP set-top box lineup and customer base, and the major contracts it has scored with AT&T, Deutsche Telekom, and Telus, are paying off.”

Infonectics currently has the survey available for sale for those interested.

To find out more about David Tucker, Vice President and General Manager Small Business Business Unit (SBBU), and Cisco, visit the company at Video World Conference & Expo, collocated with ITEXPO West 2012 taking place Oct. 2-5, in Austin, TX. The Video World Conference & Expo highlights the latest strategies and technologies available to executives who are serious about leveraging emerging video communications capabilities to build competitive advantage. Tucker will be a keynote speaker at the event. For more information on ITEXPO (News - Alert) West 2012 click here.