LAS VEGAS: Just over half of American adults (53%) believe mobile devices will replace traditional TV as the most common way to view TV shows and movies, and they expect this switchover to happen within eight years, new research has indicated.

Timed to coincide with the CES (Consumer Electronics Show) 2014, the poll of 1,000 US consumers from Irdeto, the global solutions provider for the media industry, also found that almost a third (31%) expect the change to occur in the next one to five years.

That said, almost half (47%) of respondents think the mobile takeover will never happen.

Consumer demand for 4K and Ultra HD TVs is also growing, the survey found, and a generational "binge viewing" trend appears to be emerging, with 60% of 18-24 year olds indicating they liked to watch shows all at once without waiting for new episodes.

The importance of live broadcasting for US consumers is confirmed with 65% of respondents saying they still preferred to watch live content – whether via TV or streamed on a mobile device.

And while demand for next-generation 4K and Ultra HD television is growing, Irdeto said its momentum still had a way to go because only 18% are "very interested", 40% "somewhat interested" while 16% have no interest at all in the cutting-edge tech.

Richard Frankland, Irdeto's vp of sales, Americas, said the television industry is witnessing a fundamental shift akin to how mobile devices eclipsed the landline telephone market.

"We have reached a point where not only are devices as important to consumers as televisions, but a generational clash is also occurring between the demand for live programming and over the top services," he said.

However, Frankland also expressed confidence that consumers will be brought back through innovations like 4K and that operators and content owners will be able to meet consumer demand.

Data sourced from Irdeto; additional content by Warc staff