Commercial free-to-air television is enjoying longer view times, but with emerging alliances between TV manufacturers, IPTV companies and online stores, will it continue to dominate?
According to a review of official ratings data for the year’s first six months, television still has its pulling power with an increase in viewing time across metropolitan and regional audiences.
Compared to the same period last year, metro viewers are watching an extra 35 minutes of television per week, while regional viewing is up by 1 hour and 45 minutes weekly. Most of this time is spent watching commercial free-to-air television.
Commercial free-to-air television has hit its highest viewing numbers in seven years with a million more viewers in 2011 than in 2010.
Statistics reveal the largest viewing audience in a metropolitan area are people above the age of 55, while people between the ages of 25-39 being the most popular regional viewers.
Rhonda Brown, the director of marketing, claims the figures reaffirm the strength of television as a platform and believes its strength is owed to its solid programming and the of new digital channels.
“Blockbuster programming and the new digital channels have helped fuel an extraordinary increase in the number of people tuning into Free TV every day,” says Brown.
Although viewers are tuning in weekly to keep up to date on television programming, the future of broadcasting has to be questioned with channels such as 7 and the ABC introducing online components (Plus7 and iView respectively) to their existing TV stations. Initially considered an online extra, the move safeguards them with its existing customer base tuning in on TV, and then jumping online for extra content.
There’s also many competitive Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) companyies emerging, being offered by the likes of iinet and Telstra.
This combined with the latest generation of ‘smart TVs’ being launched (which offer IP enabled TV) and the recently announced Quickflix deal begs the question, will television as a broadcasting source continue to dominate in a market where it’s being clawed at by emerging internet based technologies?
Read: LG, Panasonic & Sony To Stream Quickflix Movies New OZ Netflix here
