After TV Sets, Users Prefer To Watch On Tablets – Not Desktop

New research from IpsosMediaCT for Thinkbox has found that tablets (for example the iPad from Apple, the Galaxy from Samsung and the Nexus from Google) will soon overtake laptops as the device of choice for users who wish to watch a film or TV show not on their TV sets, Brand Republic reports.

The research consists of answers gathered from 1,000 interviews of people from across the UK and found that the increase in popularity of tablets for watching TV, video-on-demand or films was quite impressive; in the same research (called the ‘TV Nation report’) from 2012, only 5% of the UK watched video via their tablet devices – this year, however, the figure has risen to 17%. Users viewing video on their laptops was measured at 22% in 2012, and 23% in 2014. It therefore seems that tablet viewing will overtake laptops as early as next year.

Ofcom also released data this week regarding media consumption trends in the UK and found that the number of UK homes with a TV set had in fact fallen for the first time since records began. This is due to consumers turning to alternative devices – such as tablets – to watch or stream programmes. This is reflected in the list of the top-downloaded apps in Q3 of 2014: Netflix, YouTube, BBC iPlayer, ITV Player and 4oD.

When asked why they chose to use tablets for programme viewing, 41% of respondents said it was to catch-up on missed shows, 31% did so because they wanted to watch something whilst others watched something else in the same room, 25% wanted to watch something in a room with no TV, 23% wanted to watch something that wasn’t available on their TV set and 21% did so for entertainment whilst travelling.