TV viewing maintains record levels in 2011

Television viewing maintained record levels in 2011, as big shows such as The X Factor and Sherlock kept the average viewer glued to the box for four hours and two minutes every day, a new report has revealed.

According to TV marketing body Thinkbox, commercial TV channels (non-BBC) were "responsible for maintaining the record viewing level", as they accounted for 64% of all linear TV viewing, up 1.3% on 2010. For the younger 16-34 audience, the commercial viewing share rose to 72%.

Using figures from the Broadcasters' Audience Research Board (BARB), Thinkbox found that average daily TV viewing in 2011 was at exactly the same level as the previous year. The average viewer watched 28 hours and 14 minutes of TV a week, down by one minute on the previous year's figures.



Thinkbox found that the average person consumed 18 hours and 11 minutes of commercial TV a week, an increase of 22 minutes a week on 2010.

In the last ten years, commercial TV viewing has increased by more than three hours and 30 minutes a week. Viewers watch two hours and 36 minutes of non-BBC TV a day, up 31 minutes a day over the last 10 years.

The increase in commercial TV viewing has also meant that people are watching more TV ads, as commercial impacts (the number of ads watched at normal speed) during 2011 were up 2.6% year-on-year. The average viewer watched 47 ads a day during last year.

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BARB's official figures do not cover TV viewing on other devices, such as laptops, tablets and smartphones, but the body has been monitoring these viewing devices since 2005.

The collected data suggests that there is an additional 1.2% of TV viewing via other devices, and that rises to 2.9% for 16 to 34-year-olds.

According to BARB, 90.6% of all linear TV was watched live as it was broadcast in the UK last year, while only 9.4% was 'timeshifted' on digital video recorder (DVR) services such as Sky+ and Freeview+.

Non-live viewing was up from 7.6% in 2010, which was largely due to more households owning a DVR service, estimated at 50% of UK households. In DVR households, 84.7% of TV was watched live and 15.3% consumed via timeshift within seven days - this level has remained roughly stable since the first DVRs were introduced ten years ago.

Thinkbox believes that total linear TV viewing levels will now stabilise after a sustained period of record growth.

The body feels that new technology innovations, such as high definition and timeshift, have enhanced the TV experience and 'magnetised' viewers to living room set.

It also pointed to the fact that around 97% of UK homes now have access to a digital TV service, while video on-demand platforms such as BBC iPlayer are sending people "back to the broadcast schedules". Around 89% of people use on-demand TV to catch up on missed live shows.

Another issue not flagged up by Thinkbox but potentially significant is the rise of 'second screening', the use of smartphones and tablets to access social media services around TV shows.



As Twitter and Facebook activity around Strictly Come Dancing and Sherlock is fast-becoming almost as compelling as the programmes themselves, this is creating a 'virtual water cooler' phenomenon, in that people do not want to miss out on the live TV event.

Another important issue around 'second screening' is the high chance of viewers being exposed to spoilers, giving away important details about the show before they have had chance to see it.

"These figures explain why so many tech companies want to join the TV industry. Many companies are flocking to launch new TV services or social media services that feed off people's love affair with TV," said Lindsey Clay, Thinkbox's managing director.

"It is obvious that people want to watch TV programmes on the best screen in the home if they can and 2012 will bring more opportunities to do that with the sale of connected TVs and more catch-up TV services to the TV set.

"And alongside that there is now a wide variety of personal screens to watch TV on which make TV even more convenient; tablets are really delivering an excellent mobile TV experience.

"TV continues to be the most effective form of advertising there is and the instant responses that second screens enable is making it even more so."