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Roku Holds Lead In Streaming Media Players, But Amazon, Apple Gain

Streaming video device pioneer Roku continues to lead the market, but rivals Amazon.com ( AMZN ), Apple ( AAPL ) and Alphabet ( GOOGL )-owned Google are close behind. Roku accounted for 30% of streaming media players purchased in 2015, down from 34% in 2014, research firm Parks Associates reported Tuesday . The Los Gatos, Calif.-based company makes set-top boxes and streaming media sticks that plug into TVs. Increasingly Roku is getting its software installed in smart TVs, eliminating the need for separate hardware to access Internet video services like Netflix ( NFLX ), Hulu and Amazon Prime Video. Amazon moved into a virtual tie with Google at 22% of streaming media device sales. Amazon sells Fire TV devices and Google sells Chromecast streaming sticks. Apple came in fourth place with 20% market share for its Apple TV set-top box. The top four players accounted for 94% of streaming media players purchased in 2015, up from 86% in 2014, Parks Associates said. About 36% of U.S. broadband households have at least one streaming media player, up from 27% a year ago, Parks said. “Device makers have successfully sold streaming media players to consumers by offering easy access to a variety of content streams, as well as frequent updates that add the latest innovation,” Parks analyst Barbara Kraus said in a statement. “Amazon in particular has benefited by promoting its Fire TV devices in conjunction with the company’s Prime Video service as well as streams from HBO, Showtime and other premium offerings.” RELATED: Netflix Gets Vote Of Confidence From RBC Amid Heightened Skepticism

The Truth About Tesla’s 2018 Target: 900% Production Hike Needed

Loading the player… After the Model 3 received such a big response, Tesla Motors ( TSLA ) moved up its 500,000 annual unit build plan by two years to 2018. But just how much will Tesla have to increase its production to do so? In 2015, Tesla delivered 50,658 vehicles. That means it will have to increase production by 887% in just three years to meet that target. If CEO Elon Musk wants to deliver 1 million cars by 2020, that’s a production increase of 1,874%. For 2016, Tesla expects to deliver between 80,000 and 90,000 cars. By comparison, Ford ( F ) sold 231,316 vehicles just last month, while General Motors ( GM ) sold 259,557 in April. But CEO Elon Musk remains optimistic, and he has reason to be: The new Model 3 received nearly 400,000 orders in its first three weeks on presale. And Evercore ISI said last week that though Tesla’s 2018 production target is aggressive, it’s not impossible.

Apple Pay Rival MCX, Visa Loom At PayPal Analyst Day

Delays and staff cuts at Merchant Customer Exchange (MCX), a mobile payments consortium, will likely boost Apple Pay, while PayPal ( PYPL ) management’s view on MCX’s woes should be a hot topic at PayPal’s analyst day on Wednesday. MCX said Tuesday it will cut 30 jobs and again delay the launch of its mobile app , a potential rival of  Apple ( AAPL ) Pay and others. MCX has been courting retailers, Apple,  Alphabet ’s ( GOOGL ) Google, PayPal, Samsung, Visa ( V ) and others in the mobile payments space.  Wal-Mart ( WMT ) has been MCX’s main backer. PayPal will be hosting its first analyst day following its 2015 spinoff from eBay ( EBAY ) last year. The event will be held in San Jose, Calif. PayPal recently launched its redesigned mobile app, which works on Apple iPhones and Android-based devices, in 145 countries. While Apple and MCX were rivals, PayPal has aimed to partner with different players in mobile payments. PayPal in March 2015 acquired Paydiant, which had close ties to MCX and retailers. MCX had aimed to reduce the clout of credit card firms in the nascent mobile payments business, analysts say. Prior to the latest MCX announcement, Citigroup analyst Ashwin Shirvaikar said in a research report that PayPal’s relationship with Visa and MasterCard ( MA ) was one area of interest heading into its analyst day. At Jefferies, analyst Jason Kupferberg was also hoping for an update on Visa. “PayPal’s relationship with Visa remains a topic of interest for the Street, but we wouldn’t be surprised if there is limited commentary at the analyst day on this topic, given ongoing negotiations,” Kupferberg wrote in a report. Prior to the eBay spinoff, PayPal acquired Braintree, a mobile payment service, and Venmo, a hybrid mobile payment app and social network for millennials. Daniel Perlin, an analyst at RBC Capital, expects mobile to be a big theme at PayPal’s analyst day. “We believe management will outline its plans to shift from its legacy e-commerce platform into a leading mobile-first platform for payments, with its Braintree asset being front and center.”