The Russian-designed online cinema application Ivi has become one of the most frequently used applications in the world thanks to popularity of Smart TV on the Russian market, the company said Wednesday.
According to LG's statistics, Ivi was the third most frequently used online cinema application in June among owners of LG television sets with Smart TV functions.
Samsung said Ivi was the fifth most popular application on their TVs, while Phillips reported that it was most popular in Europe for their products.
The application is available only to residents of Russia, which means that Ivi's overall success was due exclusively to its popularity among Russian TV viewers, the company stressed.
LG's representative confirmed the information reported by Ivi.
Samsung's representatives refused to discuss the information and Phillips' representatives were unavailable for comment, Vedomosti reported.
Together, the three aforementioned brands make up over 80 percent of Smart TV sales in Russia and the rest of the world, according to the electronics chain M-Video.
Smart TV is a technology that allows viewers to watch online programs in high definition on regular televisions. Since appearing on the mass consumer market two years ago it has become a standard feature on most recent TV models..
Smart TV has been increasingly popular on the Russian market. According to GfK Rus, the number of TV sets with Smart TV function sold in Russia in the first six months of this year was 2.5 times higher than in the same period of 2012. Almost 40 percent of TVs sold in Russia this year are equipped with the function, M-Video said.
After China and Brazil, Russia has become the third biggest market in the world for Smart TV sales, rising from the fifth position a year ago, GfK Rus estimated. The statistic excludes the U.S. Smart TV market.
According to the company's data for this year, Ivi receives 125-150 million views per month: 50-65 million are from desktops and notebooks, 40-45 million from TVs and the rest from tablets and smartphones.
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