IHS Markit has revealed that the time spent watching broadcast television in the UK and France plateaued last year.
The lack of growth has been attributed to the rise of on-demand, pay-per-view and subscription-based services including Netflix and Now TV. The IHS study examined the TV watching habits of Europe’s five largest markets: France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK.
The study indicated that linear TV will continue to dominate the industry, with Italy representing the largest consumption of live broadcast television, due to the relatively low uptake of fixed broadband services in the country. Meanwhile, Germany’s results actually showed an increase in linear viewing time.
Fateha Begum, Associate Director for Television Media at IHS Markit said,
“Despite declines, linear TV will continue to account for the bulk of television viewing and must reach a point of plateau. However, traditional TV operators need to address the fact that competition for consumers’ time and media spend is intensifying”.
