• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer, July 31, 2015

According to GfK MRI, in recently-released data, digital streaming now represents an estimated one-quarter of time spent watching TV, closing the gap with live TV, which occupies a leading 39% of all time spent using TV content. Streaming is on par with time-shifting via DVR, which also captures an estimated one-quarter of viewing time. The study indicates that content viewers are spending almost one-tenth of their TV viewing time streaming through a traditional TV set.

When consumers were separately asked about the devices on which they watch TV shows, they estimated spending 28% of their TV time streaming content to various devices:

• Online streaming through a traditional TV set accounts for 9% of time spent watching TV;str
• Accessing subscription or free online platforms via a computer or mobile device accounts for 16%; and
• The remaining 3% comes from other methods for accessing content, such as portable game consoles.

The new report also reveals that 41% of TV viewers are “Digital Enthusiasts,” who subscribe to at least three digital TV services online, as well as maintain a traditional pay TV subscription (cable/satellite/telco). Other new and emerging viewer groups identified through this study include

• “TV 2.0” – combine the best of both worlds, accessing traditional and streaming TV content, mostly through their TV sets  
• “On-the-Go Getters” – watch their TV programming only on mobile devices  

Digital Enthusiasts are more likely than other groups to use TV network apps for TV viewing; 44% currently use network apps that do not require a cable subscription, and 35% use network apps that do require a cable subscription. Overall, Digital Enthusiasts spend $10.80 per month on apps. 57% are also frequent (“all the time/often”) binge viewers, and they note that the Internet is their “most trusted media source.”  

In addition, according to the report, 30% of TV viewers report watching a program on a smartphone in the past 30 days, and 29% say they have used a tablet to watch TV content in the same time frame. Overall, smartphones and tablets account for 8% of all TV time; and the average number of apps used to view TV programs in the past 30 days is about 7 for mobile devices.

The report also documents the continuing appeal of traditional “live” TV viewing. “Watch a show live when it is first broadcast” placed at #1 among favorite ways to watch TV; and viewing “live when broadcast” accounts for 39% of all time spent using TV content.

When consumers were separately asked about the devices on which they watch TV shows, they estimated spending 28% of their TV time streaming content to various devices:

• Online streaming through a traditional TV set accounts for 9% of time spent watching TV;
• Accessing subscription or free online platforms via a computer or mobile device accounts for 16%; and
• The remaining 3% comes from other methods for accessing content, such as portable game consoles.

Traditional live TV remains consumers’ favorite means of consuming TV viewing, per the study, which also found fewer than one-third of TV viewers reporting having watched a program on a smartphone (30%) or tablet (29%) during the prior 30 days.

Also of note: while streaming continues to gain popularity, it doesn’t appear to be at the expense of pay-TV subscriptions. The Diffusion Group (TDG) shows that among US adult broadband users, 84% of Netflix users also use legacy pay-TV, down only slightly from 2012 (87%). The percentage of legacy pay-TV users also using Netflix has grown from 36% to 49% during that same period.

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