OTTAWA — More than half of English TV viewers in Canada have engaged in some form of second screen interaction, such as looking up something about a TV show while watching it, and almost one-third have engaged in “social TV” activities, such as chatting about a TV program on social media. That’s according to the latest report from Media Technology Monitor (MTM), Second Screen Interaction: Analysis of the Anglophone Market.
Based on MTM’s research, 54% of Anglophone TV viewers are second screen viewers, with the most popular forms of second screen interaction being: looking up something about a TV show while watching it (36%); “liking” a show on Facebook (23%); and researching a product seen in a commercial while watching (19%). Less common forms of second screen interaction include: watching TV-related webisodes (11%); downloading an app for a TV show (7%); and Twitter-related TV interaction (6%).
For the 31% of Anglophones who are social TV viewers, in addition to chatting about a TV program on Facebook or Twitter, other forms of social TV interaction include following a Twitter feed related to a TV show or joining a Facebook group dedicated to discussing television. According to MTM, 63% of Twitter users are social TV viewers, along with 46% of Facebook users.
In general, second screen viewers tend to be young, with 74% of people aged 18 to 34 saying they have engaged in second screen interaction, as have 71% of students. Furthermore, second screen viewers show a strong interest in creating content online. For example, according to MTM, second screen viewers are significantly more likely than other Anglophones to post photos and video online, post content on a blog, comment on a news story or article, or write an online review.
MTM research found Anglophones who own TV technologies that allow them to watch what they want, when they want, are more likely to be second screen viewers. Specifically, 68% of Apple TV owners identified themselves as second screen viewers, as did 66% of Google Chromecast owners, 62% of smart TV owners and 71% of Internet-connected TV set owners. In addition, 70% of Netflix subscribers said they are also second screen viewers.
MTM also found that, compared to the average Anglophone, second screen viewers who own a tablet are twice as likely to have downloaded a TV show-related app. Furthermore, second screen viewing tends to be high among Anglophones who stream media online, MTM said.
When it comes to watching TV on a regular TV set versus new platforms, MTM found viewers who access TV both traditionally and on new platforms are 25% more likely to interact with the show via a second screen. Viewers who watch traditional TV only are 30% less likely to engage in social screen activities than the general population, according to MTM.
In one interesting finding, second screen viewership was slightly higher among Anglophones who watch over-the-air TV broadcasts (60%), compared to subscribers of paid TV services (53%) and “tuned-out” TV watchers (54%).
In terms of overall TV viewing, second screen viewers tend to watch as much regular TV on a TV set as other Anglophones, averaging 13.2 hours in a typical week. However, second screen viewers spend an average of 25.5 hours online per week, compared to other Anglophones who spend an average of 20.1 hours online in a typical week.
Among the second screen viewers who have engaged in social TV activities is a smaller subset that MTM defines as “engaged social TV viewers” — people who discuss TV programs on Twitter or Facebook in real-time while watching the program. Similar to second screen viewers, engaged social TV viewers tend to be young and interested in online content creation. Also, real-time social TV engagement tends to be higher among Twitter users than Facebook users. One-quarter of Twitter users said they have tweeted about a TV program while watching it, while only 11% of Facebook users said they have commented or chatted on Facebook about a TV program in real time.
Finally, engaged social TV viewers typically spend 33.8 hours per week online, which is more than 8 hours more the typical second screen viewer, MTM said.
To access MTM’s report on Second Screen Interaction, click here.
