THE WAY THAT CONSUMERS use their television is evolving as quickly as one can change a channel. At least half of viewers now use Internet-based on-demand TV every week, while more than 70% are streaming, downloading or watching recorded broadcast TV on a weekly basis, according to a new study from Ericsson ConsumerLab.
Multi Screen Media Consumption 2010 found that consumers want a personalized, easy-to-use, high-quality, on-demand service without commercial breaks as their next TV service. And despite consumers’ current unwillingness to pay for on-line content, data shows a clear correlation between which features consumers find important and their willingness to pay for them.
“The conclusion of our study is that the consumption is fragmented and complex”, said Anders Erlandsson, senior advisor at Ericsson ConsumerLab, in a press release. “There are few established consumption patterns and it’s a trial-and-error market with lots of curiosity around it. The consumer is looking for a solution that can offer them the freedom to choose what they want, when they want it and how they want it. The user experience is in focus, rather than the technical platform.”
The study also found that:
– Consumers are spending up to 35% of their leisure time watching TV and video content. As they become more aware of new technologies, this will create new patterns of media consumption;
– At least once a week, 93% are still watching scheduled, linear broadcast TV, but the role of broadcast TV is changing owing to the introduction of new distribution channels;
– Broadcast live content is still very important to consumers, but the ability to decide when and how to watch TV will affect the role of linear or scheduled broadcast content; and
– 37% of consumers say that they are “very interested” in using a touch screen tablet as a remote control.
Data was collected in China, Germany, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, the UK and U.S., and the sample in the study is representative of more than 300 million consumers.
At Ericsson ConsumerLab, studies focus on how consumers act and what they think about telecom and TV products and services, helping operators understand their customers and develop revenue-generating strategies.
