A digital media player usually means a device that brings online video and other media services to a television. It may be a separate streaming box or stick, or streaming capability built into a TV. The same initials, DMP, also have a more specific meaning in DLNA networking, so the context matters.
What does a digital media player do?
In everyday consumer-electronics use, a digital media player connects a TV to online services so viewers can stream shows, films, music, and other content. ENERGY STAR also calls these products over-the-top (OTT) devices or media streamers, and gives Roku and Apple TV as examples. The key point is the function: delivering internet media to a TV, not a particular shape or connection method. ENERGY STAR’s digital media player overview describes this consumer category.
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A player may be a standalone box or stick connected to a TV, or the streaming experience may be integrated into the television. In IPTV terminology, ITU-T H.721 identifies both set-top boxes and TVs with embedded IPTV capabilities as terminal-device types. IPTV specifically concerns linear TV, video-on-demand, and related data delivered over a managed content delivery network; it is related terminology, not a universal definition of every consumer streaming player. ITU-T H.721 sets out that IPTV context.
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In DLNA documentation, Digital Media Player is a defined network role rather than a general name for any streaming product. Microsoft Learn’s glossary describes a DLNA DMP as a UPnP control point: it can discover and invoke actions on UPnP devices. Microsoft’s UPnP Media Control Protocol glossary explains the terminology.
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Microsoft’s DLNA extension documentation describes the DMP role as incorporating a client role that streams content from a Digital Media Server, and recommends support for multiple such servers. This standards-based role should not be confused with the broader consumer label on a TV streaming device. Microsoft’s Digital Media Player Details describes the DLNA role.
DMP and MediaRenderer are different roles
A DLNA DMP acts as a control point/client. A MediaRenderer is a separate UPnP device type for rendering audiovisual content from a home network. ISO/IEC 29341-20-2:2017 defines that MediaRenderer type; ISO reports that the standard was reviewed and confirmed in 2025 and remains current. ISO/IEC 29341-20-2 covers the MediaRenderer device type.
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Media formats are not device categories
Support for a format such as a music, photo, streaming, or portable-video format describes what content a system can handle; it does not by itself define the device’s role. MPEG’s MPEG-A overview is an example of standards organized around multimedia formats and applications. MPEG’s MPEG-A overview provides that format-oriented context.
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Not necessarily. If the TV already offers the streaming services you need, a separate device may be unnecessary. If you are considering one, check the exact model’s current app support and output specifications against your television and home network. ENERGY STAR advises comparing app availability, picture quality, additional functions, and price; it also notes that offerings vary between devices. Its buying guidance is category-level advice, so confirm current compatibility and specifications with the service and device maker.
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- HDMI 2.1 cable required (sold separately)
- See movies and TV shows from all your services right from your home screen[2]; and find new things to watch with tailored recommendations for everyone in your home based on their interests and viewing habits
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- Services: Verify that the apps your household uses are available on the platform.
- Picture output: Match the device’s supported resolution to the TV. For higher-quality streaming, account for the network connection as well.
- Additional functions: Check whether music playback, photo display, or gaming matters to you.
- Cost: Prices and availability change; check current listings rather than relying on old category-wide price ranges.
What do the energy and adoption figures mean?
ENERGY STAR says an ENERGY STAR certified digital media player is 45 percent more efficient, using the comparison basis stated on its page. That figure applies to certified devices under that source’s comparison; it is not a claim about every player. ENERGY STAR also compares a traditional cable or satellite box as using about four times as much energy as a DMP, a computer 11 times as much, and a game console 15 times as much. These are ENERGY STAR category comparisons, not measurements of every device or household. See ENERGY STAR’s stated comparisons and qualification.
One adoption statistic is historical, not a current market count: ENERGY STAR attributes to the Consumer Technology Association’s May 2018 20th Annual CE Ownership and Market Potential Study the finding that 107 million U.S. households had a digital media player in 2018, up 39 percent from 2017. It should be read as U.S. data for those years, not as a present-day estimate. ENERGY STAR provides the attribution.
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