In North America, TV is the dominant screen for viewing OTT video content, accounting for 82% of time spent on the activity in Q2 2021.

This report reviews our final 2020 numbers and new 2021 forecast for US time spent with media, highlighting pre- and post-pandemic estimates and expectations. Special attention is paid to TV, connected TV, OTT, digital audio, and social media.

Over 34% of internet users owned a smart TV in H1 2021, compared with 29.5% a year prior. Yet—as in previous surveys—penetration in France remained well below that of several other Western European countries. In Germany, Italy, and Spain, for example, about 56% of respondents had a smart TV this year.

However, all digital video viewing on “other connected devices” takes place on CTV devices, meaning that our “other connected devices video” figures indicate time spent consuming digital video on CTV devices. So, for the purposes of this section, we will refer to “other connected devices” as CTV.

Time spent with mobile phones had risen to 3:12. By contrast with PCs, smart TVs recorded a notable gain between 2020 and 2021, with ownership climbing to 51.5% of internet users. Similarly, smartwatches made a sizable advance in all demographic groups, as overall penetration rose from 15.2% to 21.4%. Among affluent respondents, that share was 28.5%.

And in terms of time spent, online TV and video lagged far behind live TV, at an average of 46 minutes per day. The share of internet users who owned a smart TV rose by about 6 percentage points, to 49.2% in H1 2021. Digital audio content, including music and audiobooks, climbed modestly year over year to reach 63.6% of internet users in H1.

Smart TVs are gaining ground as high-quality in-home viewing becomes a must-have. In all but a handful of countries, smart TV ownership rose by several percentage points YoY. In many cases, that lifted penetration above 50% for the first time. Japan was the most striking outlier; just 9.0% of internet users there owned a smart TV this year.

The average time spent with PCs and tablets each day rose 24 minutes during the same period, to 3:39. While PC ownership is waning somewhat, smart TVs are still gaining fans. Some 30.7% of respondents owned a smart TV in H1 2021—an increase of 6 percentage points compared with 2020.

Mobile devices ranked second in terms of time spent, at an average 2:21 daily. That was also up compared with 2020, but by a smaller margin than time spent with larger digital screens. Several advanced digital devices saw increased adoption this year. More than half of respondents owned a smart TV. In high-income households, that share passed 60% in H1 2021.

Despite the rise in digital video consumption, only 35.2% of internet users owned a smart TV in H1 2021. Affluence seems to be a determining factor; since 2019, smart TV ownership has aligned more closely with household income than with any other demographic trait.

Time spent with mobile devices averaged 2:45 daily in H1 2021, compared with 2:29 in H1 2020. Yet time devoted to PCs and tablets had also risen and still exceeded mobile time, at 3:47. Smart TVs posted significant growth in both 2020 and 2021, due at least partly to the pandemic and greater engagement with in-home entertainment.

Time spent daily with larger-screen devices had risen by 39 minutes during the year, though; mobile time was up by 12 minutes. Smart TV penetration climbed strongly, from 37.3% to 45.2% in H1 2021. Among internet users ages 45 to 64 and those in affluent homes, more than 53% owned a smart TV this year. But ownership had risen in all demographic groups, except respondents living in rural areas.

The average time spent each day with PCs and tablets climbed from 2:52 in H1 2020 to 3:03 this year. Social networking and messaging accounted for one of the biggest chunks of media engagement daily in H1 2021, at 2:31. Smart TVs and voice assistants were the most popular advanced devices. India’s internet users are among the world’s most receptive to voice assistants.

Smart TV ownership has remained roughly the same in Colombia for some time; 56.6% of those surveyed owned one in H1 2021, compared with 57.0% last year. As in 2020, uptake was much lower in low-income households and suburban and rural areas, but rose above 70% of internet users in high-income households. Time spent on mobile phones and larger-screen devices changed little between 2020 and 2021.

Broadcast TV, radio, and print have maintained substantial audiences, though time spent with digital alternatives is greater. The share of internet users ages 16 to 64 in Malaysia who watched live TV in the month prior to polling rose very minimally between 2020 and 2021, from 79.9% to 80.2%. It saw a very slight decrease in time spent per day, however, to 1 hour, 45 minutes (1:45).

Time spent with desktops, laptops, and tablets also climbed, from 3:38 in H1 2020 to 3:55 in H1 2021. Males, respondents ages 45 to 64, and those in affluent homes continued to overindex for PC ownership. Most of the same factors applied to tablets, though female ownership was higher for these devices. Smart TVs also entered more households in H1 2021, taking penetration to 38.2%.

Time spent each day with mobile devices surpassed time spent with desktops, laptops, and tablets by half an hour in H1 2021. On average, internet users spent 4 hours, 27 minutes (4:27) daily with mobile phones, compared with 3:57 on larger-screen devices. Both mobile and PC time rose year over year (YoY); PCs recorded the larger gain, though.

The share of respondents who owned a smart TV reached 66.6% in H1 2021, compared with 60.8% in H1 2020. As before, ownership correlated directly with higher income. City dwellers were also more likely to own a smart TV than individuals in suburban and rural areas. About two-thirds (67.7%) of internet users listened to broadcast radio in the month prior to polling.

Though adoption of some digital devices has been slow, smart TVs are going from strength to strength as enablers of greater TV consumption overall. Almost 56% of internet users polled in H1 2021 owned a smart TV. Penetration neared 65% in high-income households and among internet users ages 45 to 54. But even in the 16-to-24 age group, half of those polled owned a connected TV.