TORONTO- New research from CTAM Canada shows that despite growth in awareness of video on demand, many Canadians still don’t understand key aspects of the maturing service.
Awareness of VOD among Canadians has grown to 81%, up from 75% in 2008, according to the marketing group’s In Touch survey of 2,000 Canadians done in early June 2009.
Of those who’ve heard of VOD, only half say they are “very” or “somewhat” familiar with it and among analog cable subscribers, less than half are aware that they need digital service to access VOD.
More troubling for cable is that fewer than 2 in 10 of all Canadians are aware that VOD is not available from satellite TV. This confusion emphasizes the need to communicate the benefits of VOD to the viewers’ television experience, says the CTAM report.
“This research shows that cable service providers need to focus more effort on educating subscribers about the features and benefits of VOD” said John Piercy, president of CTAM Canada. “Despite program providers and cable operators investing millions of dollars in creating and distributing VOD programs, many people do not understand nor do they enjoy the benefits available to them through the VOD platform.”
Of VOD users, 63% state that VOD has improved their TV viewing experience “a great deal” or “somewhat”. Women and those aged over 35 years old are most likely to report an improved TV viewing experience as a result of VOD.
While movies continue to be the most commonly watched type of VOD, watching TV series has increased since 2008. The growth in series viewing is driven by women and viewers aged 18-49 years old. All VOD users have high expectations around their on demand series viewing. The majority expect access to all episodes from all seasons, the next day and commercial free. That said, commercials at the beginning or end of a program are acceptable to 25% of VOD users slightly up vs. 2008.
