The 2017 Media Consumer Survey has launched, a detailed 44-page report that examines our changing media habits, from traditional TV to streaming, from real news to fake and plenty more.
Deloitte’s new report shows that we are “watching more TV/video content, binging more, watching less live sports and news, and have changed the way we access online news because of ‘fake news’.”
Kimberly Chang, Deloitte’s newly appointed Technology, Media and Telecommunications leader, said “the demise of media is an oft-told story, but Deloitte’s 2017 Media Consumer Survey shows that there is much in how Australian consumers are behaving that is positive for the media industry".
“Not only is watching TV and video content on any device the preferred entertainment activity for 59% of Australians (alongside browsing the Internet), we are also watching more videos or TV show content each week than ever before and we are binge watching for longer,” said Chang.
{loadposition alex08}“Our report shows we are seeing a rise, not demise, of the viewing of TV-type content. However, we are now watching the content in very different ways, particularly through Subscription Video On Demand services such as Netflix or Stan. Australians are combining a number of sources to get more of the content they want, and when they want it.”
There’s plenty more detail below, but if you want to register for and download the free report, you can do so here. For more information and to download a copy of the report, please click here.
The full video of the launch event for this report is embedded below, and includes some very interesting questions by the journalists and others present, including from me, so it’s well worth your time to watch it.
Article continues, please read on.
Overall, we’re told, “Australians are watching an average of 17.5 hours of content per week in 2017, compared with 17.2 hours in 2015".
For some reason, Deloitte states “this question was not asked in 2016, so figures are only available for 2015 and 2017. Figures on TV viewing relate to watching on any single device".
Of all age groups, Deloitte continues, “those over 50 (Boomers and Matures) have increased their viewing the most by 1.3 and 1.7 additional hours per week respectively".
It then turns out that we love our streaming, with Deloitte stating that “the majority (59%) of survey respondents are binging by watching three or more consecutive TV episodes in a single sitting. Nearly one third of respondents (29%) do so weekly, and the average length of a binge session has increased from five to six episodes in the past year (4.5 hours)".
Deloitte Consulting Media leader and co-author of the report, Niki Alcorn, noted the data “shows that Australians have embraced technology that further enables their viewing experiences. 50% of respondents now own IP-enabled TVs, and ownership of over-the- top boxes and portable streaming devices is at 26% and 17% respectively".
“Subscriptions to SVOD have increased since last year (32% in 2017, up from 22% in 2016), surpassing Pay TV subscriptions for the first time. Further, 32% of SVOD subscribers access multiple services to get the right content: up from just 18% in 2016.”
So, what about changing consumer patterns in live sports and news?
Alcorn said: “The data shows that there are some early warning signals for commercial broadcasters around changing consumer patterns in watching live sports and news.
“News and sport are still what we watch most often live at the time of broadcast, but both have declined markedly over the past two years.”
This is clear when you see the figures showing that “fewer than half (45%) of 2017 survey respondents indicated they most often watch the news at the time of broadcast (compared to 63% in 2015) and fewer than a third (29%) of survey respondents most often watch sport at the time of broadcast compared to 38% in 2015".
And what of news and the 'fake news' phenomenon?
Well, you’ll see some questions and answers about that in the video embedded below, but Deloitte explains that “traditional forms of accessing news such as TV, print newspapers, radio and magazines are stable this year (used by 55% of respondents in 2017 and 54% in 2016), while 37% most frequently access digital sources for news (down just slightly from 40% last year), suggesting we have reached something of a new balancing act as consumers combine various sources in how they access news content".
On top of that, we’re told that “there has been a decline in those who use social media to access news (14% in 2017 compared to 18% last year)".
Fascinatingly, Alcorn explains that “this modest decline puts social media sites back on par with online newspapers".
“Some of the change might be attributed to the growing awareness of so-called ‘fake news’: 58% of respondents agree that they have changed the way they access news material online given the prevalence of ‘fake news’,” Alcorn continues.
But there’s more, which we discussed in the video below, which is that “the survey further reveals that 65% of respondents agree that they are concerned about the advent of fake news online, and 77% believe that they have been exposed.”
Alcorn added: “Consumers are more cynical about what they read online. However, Australians do not necessarily feel that they need help to discern the truth as 80% of respondents believe they are capable of figuring out what is real and what is fake.”
So, will Facebook face up to the fact that 'Australians are increasingly dissatisfied with social media'?
Here, Deloitte notes that “while the daily usage of social media platforms remains high, there are signs that Australians may be becoming dissatisfied with social media".
Chang returned to state that “the data shows that 20% of surveyed social media users don’t enjoy their time on social media, and nearly half spend more time on it that they would like (46%)".
“We appear to be getting social media fatigue,” Chang added, stating: “Daily social media usage has dropped slightly from 61% to 59% over the last year, and 31% of respondents have temporarily or permanently deactivated one or more of their social media accounts in the past year.
“Both trends are driven primarily by Leading Millennials.”
Chang concludes by noting that “the survey shows that 29% of respondents spend more effort maintaining their social media image and connections than they do in-person relationships. This behaviour is most prevalent among Leading Millennials (43%). Perhaps the effort required to curate a certain image on social media is contributing to their dissatisfaction".
So, what other some of the other major highlights?
Advertising influencers:
“After word of mouth and its digital equivalent (online reviews from someone we know), TV advertisements have the greatest influence on advertising decisions (53% reporting high or medium influence) The influence of social media advertising has continued to grow this year (36%) to now be on par with news, magazines, radio and billboards.”
Privacy:
"About 70% of survey respondents are worried about becoming victims of identity theft as a result of sharing information online, compared to 74% last year.”
Avoiding paying for video advertising:
“Most survey respondents will skip an ad playing before a video (77%), and half (50%) will abandon a short video completely if they cannot skip the pre-roll ad. One third (31%) use ad blocking technology to avoid ads altogether.”
Paying for online news:
“About 90% of Australians remain unwilling to pay for online news. Of those that will pay, trust in the brand and in-depth news analysis are the primary reasons they will pay.”
Myth-busting the gamer stereotypes:
“Gamers are not just young males: females (35%) are gaming just as frequently as males (36%), or at least once a week. The most popular games for females are card or puzzle games on a smartphone, while for males are first person shooting games on gaming consoles.”
And what of the background to the Deloitte Media Consumer Survey 2017?
Deloitte explains its survey “provides a snapshot of the way Australian consumers interact with media, entertainment, technologies and information across 5 categories: Video; Social; News; Advertising; Gaming".
“The demographics of the five groups surveyed are Millennials (Trailing 14-26; Leading 27- 32); Xers (33-49); Boomers (50-68); and Matures (69+). Using self-reported survey data, the research was undertaken by an independent organisation in March 2017.”
“The online survey was delivered in Australia, the USA and Norway, with more than 2000 consumers surveyed in Australia. Where provided, growth rates reflect compound annual growth rates (CAGRs) over time.”
You can download the report free of charge here.
The video of the report’s launch can be seen in full at the video below: