On Demand Increasingly The Way We Consume Digital Content, Says Ericsson

A new report has shown the extent to which viewers are now shifting to watching on-demand TV and video.

The Ericsson ConsumerLab TV & Media Report 2015 confirms other research we’ve seen this year in observing this shift, and it found that 35 per cent of all TV and video viewing time is now spent watching on-demand content.

The study – which was a massive one, encompassing the viewing habits of some 680 million consumers – found that viewers now spend six hours per week on average watching streamed on-demand TV shows, box sets and films.

That figure has doubled from the 2.9 hours per week which were spent watching on-demand content back in 2011.

The study also observed a considerable upsurge in folks watching video on their mobile – 61 per cent of consumers now watch video on their smartphone, which is up 71 per cent on 2012’s figure.

And if you look at teenagers, almost two thirds of their TV and video viewing is done on either a phone, tablet or laptop.

User generated content (UGC) such as YouTube videos is also becoming more popular, and indeed close to one in ten folks now watch YouTube for over three hours a day.

Binge viewing – watching multiple episodes of a TV series in a row – is also on the increase, and very common among subscribers to streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime. Indeed, 87 per cent of these subscribers have a binge viewing session at least once per week.

Anders Erlandsson, Senior Advisor, Ericsson ConsumerLab, commented: “The continued rise of streamed video on demand and UGC services reflects the importance of three specific factors to today’s viewers: great content, flexibility, and a high-quality overall experience. Innovative business models that support these three areas are now crucial to creating TV and video offerings that are both relevant and attractive.”