Ericsson has published its latest consumer insight summary report, “TV and Media: Identifying the Needs of Tomorrow’s Video Consumers.” The ConsumerLab surveyed more than 17,000 people worldwide and, not surprisingly, learned that an increasing number of viewers are turning to mobile devices for TV and video. The report suggests that service providers have an opportunity to create new aggregate services that will help alleviate the complexity for users that has resulted from abundance of choice.

The ConsumerLab conducted online interviews with consumers in Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, France, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Russia, Spain, South Korea, Sweden, Taiwan, the United Kingdom and the United States. All of the respondents have a broadband Internet connection.

This is the group’s fourth annual report investigating consumer trends in TV.

“When the TV industry began talking about mobile TV, everyone assumed it was going to consist mainly of professionally-made shorter video clips,” notes Anders Erlandsson, senior researcher at Ericsson ConsumerLab. “Now, we see a really interesting twist on that story. People are indeed watching shorter video sessions, but they create the video clips themselves by pausing and resuming full-length TV shows and movies whenever it suits them.”

Among the report’s key findings:

• Mobile devices make up an increasing share of TV and video viewing: 72 percent use mobile devices at least weekly for video viewing. 42 percent do this outside the home.
• TV is becoming a multiscreen and multitasking activity: 75 percent multitask by using mobile devices while watching TV. 1 in 4 even watch multiple video sources at the same time.
• Even late adopters are becoming advanced video users: As many as 41 percent of 65–69 year olds studied stream on-demand/time shifted TV and video content, including YouTube, on a more than weekly basis.
• Video-On-Demand (VOD) is increasingly used for relaxation viewing while linear and scheduled TV is shifting to appointment viewing: The value of linear TV is becoming more focused on live sports, events and other content with high ‘here and now’ appeal. 
• Social viewing continues to be closely linked to this kind of content. User-Generated Content (UGC) is becoming increasingly important: It is not only being used for entertainment, but also for education, how-to guides and watching product reviews. In fact, 82 percent use YouTube or a similar service at least monthly.
• We are witnessing the birth of aggregated, pick-and-mix TV solutions: The quest has begun to become the first easy to use, à la carte TV solution provider that aggregates consumer  TV and video needs. Consumers rank having an à la carte TV offering as the fifth most important aspect of their viewing experience. 

The full report is available online in PDF form.

Related News:
Future of Content: The Power of Video, Forbes, 7/31/13