Online video viewing will rise by 20 per cent in 2017, according to a new report from Zenith Media.
Zenith’s Online Video Forecasts 2017 reported global consumers will spend an average of 47.4 minutes a day watching video content online this year, up from 39.6 minutes in 2016.
Zenith said this rise will be driven by a 35 per cent increase in viewing on mobile devices which will account for 28.8 minutes a day compared to fixed devices, where consumers will spend 18.6 minutes per day watching video content.
Jonathan Barnard, director of global intelligence at Zenith, told TVBEurope the rise in mobile viewing is down to the increasing usability of smart phones. “There are very cheap and effective smart phone models available, displays are getting better and the data connection speeds are increasing, making it more feasible to consume content in more places at more times.”
“It’s generally becoming a better experience with more effective platform technology that can supply good video content, high quality produced material, produced by great studios. Everything is just combining to incentivise consumers to spend more time watching video on their mobile devices.”
In the UK, the reported stated consumers will watch an average of 53.3 minutes a day of online video, rising from 47.9 last year. Viewing on mobile devices will nearly double, rising from 10.9 to 20.3 minutes.
2017 will be the peak year of fixed-device video, said Zenith, with global consumers spending an average of 19 minutes per day viewing. Viewing on smart TVs will continue to rise, but not rapidly enough to compensate for the decline in viewing on desktops and laptops, as consumers shift their attention to mobile devices. Zenith forecast viewing on fixed devices to shrink one per cent in 2018 and two per cent in 2019.
“We’re seeing increases in mobile consumption across the whole world simply because the mobile device is a very personal device it’s something that consumers keep with them throughout the entire day,” said Barnard.
“It can be the first thing they pick up in the morning and the last thing they put down at night. So it’s a lot more convenient to use mobile phones to consume all kinds of media rather than with a fixed device where you have to be in the right place and you have to stay there.”
