TV Remains Dominant in Australians’ Viewing Activity

SYDNEY/NEW YORK: The television continues to be the central hub for Australians’ screen activity, according to the latest Australian Multi-Screen Report, which shows that viewers in the country are watching around 100 hours per month of broadcast TV on a traditional set.

The report, which combines data from OzTAM, Regional TAM and Nielsen, finds that 95 percent of all video viewing is on the traditional TV set. The combination of all other extended screens—PC, mobile, etc—for any video content still accounts for just 5 percent of the video consumption. Live viewing accounts for nearly 93 percent of that viewing and playback viewing is accounting for nearly 7 percent. So, the slight decline in live broadcast viewing has been offset by the increase in playback viewing, keeping broadcast TV as a whole steady.

Internet-connected TVs are now in 18 percent of Australian homes and is adding to time spent with the TV screen. Australian viewers are increasingly using their TV screen for other purposes though. "Other screen usage" now accounts for 18.1 percent of total screen time. This includes gaming, watching DVDs, online browsing, etc.

Watching video on tablets is still relatively new to the market, but it is growing in popularity. Around 22 percent of homes have at least one tablet device. Other key findings of the report are that 45 percent of Australians watch some form of video online through a PC or laptop each month, for an average of 3 hours and 45 minutes.

TV viewing remains "robust and stable," the report states. In Australia 97 percent of homes can receive DTT, and 79 percent have now converted every working set in their home to DTT. Half have digital video recorders.

“We continue to see that as Australians gain access to now four key screens across TV, PC, tablet and mobile they consume more video, continuing a long-term trend of Australians being some of the most enthusiastic consumers of media in the world,” said Matt Bruce, the managing director of Nielsen’s media group.

Doug Peiffer, the CEO of OzTAM, added: “The prevalence of new technologies—PVRs, Internet-connected TVs, digital terrestrial television, smartphones and tablets—gives viewers greater choice in where, when and how much television they view. The insights provided by the Australian Multi-Screen report give the industry greater clarity on evolving TV consumption habits; it shows the hub of consumers’ screen activity remains the television set, with people adding to their viewing with new devices.”