With PCs, iPods and mobile phones, video viewing has become completely untethered from the TV, right?
Not quite.
Among adults who stream and download video, only 11% of their video is viewed on a PC, while three-quarters is viewed on a TV, according to Ipsos Insight's "MOTION" study conducted in December 2006 and January 2007.
To be clear, Ipsos used all video viewing (including TV) in its definition, not just Internet video. Regardless, the study underlines TV's dominance as the viewing device of choice, even among online video users.
Even 12-to-24-year-olds watched over 60% of their video on a TV.
Brian Cruikshank of Ipsos said, "It's clear that consumers are inclined to experiencing video, particularly longer-form content, within their living rooms. And given the growing investment many are making to upgrade their current technology at home, the TV appears to be well positioned to remain the dominant 'screen' for most video enthusiasts."
Mr. Cruikshank noted that "the largest impediment to the consumption of longer-form digital video content is the viewing medium; most consumers would simply rather watch their favorite TV shows and movies on a large screen, not on their PC or mobile device."
Still, there is a growing desire to get content from the PC to the TV.
Using Veronis Suhler data, eMarketer calculated that online and mobile TV content spending in the US will reach nearly $2.2 billion in 2010, up from $199 million in 2005. Some of this will come from downloads of shows for use with AppleTV and other devices which relay content from PCs to TVs.
As eMarketer has noted before, the rise of Internet usage, including Internet video, has not cut into TV consumption. Instead, video viewing of all sorts continues to increase.
Marketers need not fear online video cannibalization of TV viewing, especially when some of that content viewed on TV will come from... online video.
The eMarketer Video Online: Making Content Pay report will be published in August 2007. To be notified when it is released, click here.