Shipments of high-definition televisions this year surpassed that of standard TVs, a market researcher said Tuesday.

Among the drivers behind HDTV sales is significant price reductions and the increasing availability of content over multiple distribution channels, iSuppli said. As a result, HDTV shipments are expected to increase at a compound annual growth rate of 20% from 97.1 million units last year to 241.2 million by 2012.

"The technology is everywhere these days -- on broadcast television, on cable, on satellite, and on the Internet," iSuppli analyst Sheri Greenspan said in a statement. "You can’t escape hearing about something being broadcast in HD or getting the most out of your HD receiver or the most HD channels available."

Shipments of standard definition TVs, on the other hand, are expected to decline at a CAGR of 27% from 114.8 million units in 2007 to 23.1 million units by 2012, iSuppli said. In 2008, HDTV shipments will reach 124.2 million units, while non-HDTV shipments fall to 86.6 million.

In the set-top box market, HD STBs shipments are increasing at a CAGR of 36% and are expected to represent 50% of the overall STB market by 2012 from less than 20% currently. Driving the growth is the expanding availability of HD content and lowering costs to service providers to generate and deliver the content.

"This means the costs to providers to generate and deliver HD content is becoming minimal, and that savings is being passed along to the eager consumers who are waiting anxiously to view HD on their TV or Internet," Greenspan said.