There’s no doubt that sports has been a major driver of HDTV sales. The Consumer Electronics Association tries to measure this each year, with the Super Bowl leading the way as a great reason to purchase a new big-screen TV.

The numbers have been no different this year. The CEA previously estimated that the Super Bowl would lead to around 2.4 million HDTV sales. Now the NCAA Tournament is upon us, and March Madness appears to be retail madness too when it comes to buying a new TV.

The CEA’s Third Annual Sports and Technology Study: The Future of Sports Content Consumption details not only that the NCAA Tournament will likely drive another million HDTVs (934,000 was the estimate), but that sports fans are going online to watch as well.

Maybe you’re hoping to win your NCAA bracket office pool so you can use that money to watch the tourney on a 60-inch plasma next year, and be part of the roughly $1 billion in retail sales expect to be generated by HDTVs.

If you don’t win, then you might up the online on-demand video audience that no doubt is feeding the estimated 38 percent of fans who watch games free on the web, according to the CEA’s study.

About the Author:
Arlen Schweiger - Managing editor of Electronic House Magazine

Arlen contributes product news items to electronichouse.com along with his role on the print publication. Got a tip? Send it along!