James R | On 10, Oct 2017

Almost 6 in 10 viewers already prefer on-demand and catch-up TV over old-fashioned linear TV viewing, reveals new research by Ericsson.

The rise of online streaming has been steadily accelerating in recent years, and shows no sign of drilling: Ericsson expects the proportion to be about 7 in 10 by 2020, with on-demand TV to account for almost half of total viewing time. For 16–19 year olds specifically, on-demand viewing may plateau by 2020, but not until the group is watching over 25 hours per week – a 180 per cent increase since 2010.

Indeed, compared to 2010, there has been significant growth in consumers’ preference for on-demand content, with the need for viewers to take their TV content abroad also growing since 2014, which indicates that content portability will increasingly become a crucial component in the future. 

Equally, the ability to view entire seasons of TV series immediately, rather than having to wait for single episodes to be released, is essential – one in two say this is a “very important” factor in their viewing. As internet and on-demand services continue to grow and create new possibilities, fewer and fewer consumers believe traditional TV providers can meet their needs.

Ericsson also highlights “phenomenal growth” in the amount of consumers paying for on-demand services. Almost 40 per cent now pay for VOD – an increase of 26 per cent since 2012.

Young people remain the biggest driver of VOD usage: teenagers already spend more than half their time watching on-demand – an increase of more than 100 per cent, or almost 10 hours per week, since 2010. Even though on-demand viewing remains significant for everyone, its share of viewing time decreases among the older age groups – especially for consumers aged 60–69, where live and scheduled linear TV content still represents almost 80 per cent of the total viewing time, which is as much as in 2013.

Ericsson has now profiled users as falling into six types: TV Couch Traditionalists – heavy viewers of broadcasted TV via a traditional TV screen. Screen Shifsters – users of any screen, anywhere for all kinds of TV and video. Computer Centrics, who mainly consume streamed and downloaded TV and video via their computer screen. Mobility Centrics, who primarily use their mobile screen to watch content. Average TV Joes, who watch an average amount of TV and enjoy light viewing of ther video content. And TV Zeroes, who only watch a light amount of TV and video.

35 per cent of TV Couch Traditionalists are aged 50–69, compared to 15 per cent in the overall sample – a 20 percentage-point over-representation. In contrast, Mobility Centrics have a 14 percentage-point over-representation of people aged 16–24. Since 2010, TV Couch Traditionalists have shrunk significantly as a group – by almost 40 per cent – while Screen Shifters has grown by over 40 percent, and Mobility Centrics by more than 320 per cent.

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