The Effect of Streaming Technologies
We are now in the “Golden Age of Television”, audience engagement is higher than ever with budgets to match. The television industry is experiencing dramatic shifts in viewing habits.
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Consumers are increasingly extending their media time beyond traditional broadcasting, opting for On-Demand TV via the internet, which includes free Catch Up TV from traditional broadcasters and Subscription Video on Demand services (SVOD) from providers such as Netflix and Amazon. These services allow audiences to watch what they want, where they want, when they want and how they want, facilitated by the ever-increasing availability of high speed data connections, through fibre connectivity and 5G cellular networks. We are living in a world of 24/7 connectivity. By 2021, analysts predict that 81% of all internet traffic will be from video. In 2016, streaming and downloads of television shows and films in the UK overtook sales of DVDs and Blu-ray discs for the first time, contributing to the increase in total digital video revenue by almost 23% to £1.3bn.
Netflix has shown rapid growth, reaching over 13 million UK subscribers since launching in 2012 and Amazon is estimated to have attracted in excess of 2.3 million regular users to its UK video service since its launch in 2014 (source: Ampere Analysis). Netflix has stated it has more than 74 million paying subscribers in the US and almost 213.6 million subscribers worldwide. Traditional TV manufacturers are constantly improving their technology, with higher resolution, larger, smarter TVs that now bring a cinematic experience into the home. However, for the younger generation this is no longer the platform of choice; they require content that is accessible across viewing devices (including TVs, phones and tablets), so that they can choose when, where and how they view their favourite shows.
