Brits turned off by Smart TVs

Brits may not be as keen on internet-connected tellies as previously thought. A new survey conducted by pollster YouGov shows we own fewer Smart TVs than folk in other major European economies do.

We're more attracted to new telly tech than the Americans are, though.

According to YouGov, more than half of Brits (52 per cent) definitely don't want a TV capable of tuning into BBC iPlayer, YouTube, Blinkbox, Lovefilm et al. Seven per cent of those asked said they didn't know what a Smart TV is.

Of course, that may reveal a flaw in the survey, let alone the promotional efforts of LG, Samsung, Sony etc.

Ask punters if they want a "Smart TV" and they may well say they don't. Ask if they want a telly that will allow them to view iPlayer and, we think, you'd get a more positive response.

And don't forget that a fair few folk can already access these services through Blu-ray players, set-top boxes and games consoles, so simply don't need the functionality replicated in their telly.

Then there's the cost - a real barrier to purchasing in the currently very chilly economic climate.

Still, YouGov found that a quarter of Brits are undecided about Smart TV, which ten per cent already have one. A further four per cent said they're going to buy one in the next 12 months.

Tot those percentages up and you won't get to 100 - that's rounding up and down for you.

Back to the survey, and YouGov found that France (18 per cent), Denmark (15 per cent), Sweden (13 per cent), Finland (12 per cent) and Germany (11 per cent) have higher Smart TV ownership levels than we do. The USA has less: only nine per cent of them have a net-connectable telly. ®