research_research 21/04/2015 20:34 Page 1
The television’s popularity as
the go-to entertainment
device may be ending,
according to Digital Video
and the Connected Consumer,
a new research report from
global management
consulting Accenture.
The television was the only
product category to see
uniform, double-digit usage
declines across different types
of media worldwide among
viewers of nearly all ages. It is
rapidly being replaced as
consumers turn to a
combination of laptops,
desktops, tablets and
smartphones to view video
content.
The report, developed for
communications, media and
technology companies, found
that video consumption –
anytime, anywhere – has
become mainstream,
accelerating the decline of
traditional TV viewing.
to 17-year-olds abandoning the
TV screen at the rate of 33% for
movies and television shows
and 26% for sporting events.
This decline continues for 18to 34-year-olds at 14% for
movies and television shows
and 12% for sporting events,
and for 35- to 54-year-olds, at
11 and 9%, respectively. It
does, however, flatten among
the 55 and older crowd, at 6%
and 1% respectively.
”We are seeing a definitive
pendulum shift away from
traditional TV viewing,” said
Gavin Mann, Accenture’s global
broadcast industry lead. “TV
shows and movies are now a
viewing staple on mobile
devices of all shapes and sizes,
thanks to improved streaming
and longer battery life. The
second screen viewing
experience is where the
content creators, broadcasters
and programmers will succeed
or fail.”
To that point, the report
found that more than a third
(37%) of consumers own a
combination of smartphones,
laptops/desktops, and tablets.
Among those who plan to buy
a TV, 61% expect to buy a
connected TV, and 25% are
Viewership for long form video
content, such as movies and
television on a TV screen, has
declined by 13% globally over
the past year and by 11% in the
United States. Similarly, the
report found sports viewership
on TV screens declined by 10%
globally and 9% in the United
States.
Nearly all age brackets
reported double-digit declines
in TV viewing globally, with 14-
planning to buy a 4K TV, an
increase of 7% over last year.
These purchasers report that
they use these devices to
access all kinds of content on a
daily basis.
As consumers view more
content online, the quality of
online service is becoming a
growing concern. According to
Accenture’s analysis, 89% of
consumers watch long form
video on connected devices,
TV’s popularity
on the wane
28 TV Everywhere
but many report issues with
their viewing experience. The
primary complaint among more
than half (51%) of respondents
watching online video was poor
Internet service. They
complained about too much
advertising placement (42%);
buffering, or the time it takes
for video to start playing,
(33%); and loss of sound or
distortions during play (32%).
At the same time, respondents
said they would pay for online
video service if it included
greater content variety, less
advertising, and better video
quality.
The research also found,
however, that traditional
broadcasters have a strong
advantage over new market
entrants, as respondents
showed a preference for the
dominant TV broadcaster,
satellite and cable providers
versus newer Internet
providers. When consumers
were asked if pay-TV channels
or Video on Demand services
from brands such as Apple,
Netflix and Google were an
appealing offer, they scored
those options scored
significantly lower than
traditional broadcasters.
“New entrants, regardless
of their brand, will have to
prove their service quality to
consumers to capture
significant market share,” said
Mann. “Consumers prefer
established brands, and
broadcasters need to capitalise
on this while the iron is hot by
aggressively investing in multidevice platforms and securing
partnerships that leverage their
footprint into the mobile space.
A simple repackaging of the
same programming available
anywhere may not do it. It
needs to be unique and
special.”
Viewing is happening
simultaneously across multiple
devices, with 87% of consumers
using more than one device at
a time. Globally, the
smartphone is the most
frequent companion device
scoring 57% overall. This trend
is particularly strong for
millennials, with 74% of 14-
to17-year-olds using a
combination of
TV/smartphones during
viewing. This is not the case in
North America, where a
laptop/computer was used
more frequently for
simultaneous viewing (59% vs.
42% for smartphones).
“Understanding consumers
and ensuring decision-making
is centred on consumer
insights will be increasingly key
to success,” said Mann. “This
relentless focus on consumer
optimization will have an
impact on all elements of a
broadcaster’s business, from
content decision-making to
implementing converged
operating models and
exploiting the data advantage.
The future lead \