Google and Amazon are overtaking Apple and Roku for streaming devices

Google’s Chromecast stick has overtaken Apple’s Apple TV set-top box as one of the most popular Internet video streaming devices in the U.S., according to results of a survey released Tuesday. A survey of 10,000 U.S. homes with a broadband Internet connection by research firm Parks Associates found that 10% purchased either a streaming media player or stick in the first 10 months of 2014. Roku led with 29% of sales, but Chromecast was second, grabbing 20% and supplanting the more expensive Apple TV with 17% of sales, the firm said. Amazon’s Fire TV stick was fourth with 10%. Chromecast, a thumb-sized gadget that plugs into HDMI slots on TVs and streams videos over the Internet from YouTube, Netflix, Hulu and other digital media providers, hit the market in July 2013. It was a surprise hit during last year’s holiday shopping season, partly because of its low $35 price. However, the device did not place in a similar survey by Parks Associates covering full-year 2013; that survey ranked Roku first with a 46% market share and Apple second with 26%.