Live TV is still overwhelmingly popular, but VOD sees ‘rapid’ growth: Numeris

TORONTO – Even though the overwhelming majority of Canadians still watch live TV, a new study says there has been “rapid” growth in people accessing video on demand through their service providers.

Canadian audience measurement firm Numeris released a report Friday which found about 90 per cent of overall viewing is still live — a broadcast over the air or through cable — as compared with on demand.

But the findings also noted a shift in how younger demographics are watching television.

“Services such as video on demand are relatively new offerings in Canada, but they have been steadily on the rise,” the report said.

“Catch-up viewing is growing rapidly, especially for the younger age groups.”

In the study, video-on-demand was considered anything viewed through either a set-top box or a broadcaster’s website or smartphone app. It conducted the study with its radio and TV panel of 5,000 households, made up of 11,000 individuals more than two years old.

Numeris did not consider other sources, such as video streaming services like Netflix and Shomi or illegal online downloads, which are harder to accurately track.

The most common VOD users were females 25 to 49 years old, with a job, and children under 12 years.

In the United States, many cable channels have been shifting away from determining a TV show’s success by its “same-day” ratings numbers, arguing that advertisers should pay based on the popularity of shows over several days of VOD availability.

Last week, Fox became the first of the big U.S. networks to stop providing “same-day” ratings to the public.

In Canada, the changes have been much slower, though an eventual shift is expected by Numeris.

“The importance of this viewer information will increase in value as time-shifted platforms continue to grow in popularity,” it said.

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