"We are still seeing that traditional high-demand for broadcast TV," said Jonathan Ruff, senior director of technical marketing for ARRIS. "People are used to sitting in front of the main TV screen."
Yet 91% of respondents also said they use an on-demand or catch-up TV service, and 86% said they watch Internet TV with or without a box. This translates to 11 hours per week of free broadcast, 11 hours per week of subscription TV, 7 hours of on-demand or catch-up, 7 hours of Internet TV with or without a box, 5 hours of Internet streaming video via subscription service, and 4 hours of Internet shows created by users.
"The time on the internet is growing," Ruff said. "People are streaming content over the Internet alongside their broadcast subscription .... They are adding to the amount of video they consume .... We are seeing an uptrend, and obviously this is impacting network operators as they start to look at how to support the increased amount of IP video stream."
While most consumers in the United States report streaming video daily, in certain Latin American countries around half of those surveyed also said they stream content every day. Specifically, 53% in Chile, 44% in Brazil, 43% in Argentina, and 42% in Mexico. "This is interesting as a lot would think of the USA as being an area where we would see every day being a common thing," Ruff said.
Laptops and desktops are the most popular devices for streaming, followed by smartphones, tablets, and then connected TVs. "Certainly as penetration reaches the same as laptops or desktops, we will see that grow," Ruff said. "It could also be the convenience as to where there is good wire connectivity. (Maybe) they are streaming better with wireline vs. their mobile device. Service providers have to look at how they are evolving their network to support this."
Quality of experience (QoE) is still an issue for many consumers. Japan scored the best, with 55% of users saying they never experienced issues when streaming or downloading content. Next came France, with 45% of users reporting no trouble, and then the United States with 43%. "We would like to see the numbers all at 75% or 80%. There is still a lot of scope for operators to improve," Ruff said.
"Binge viewing" is a growing habit in all regions surveyed, with 80% of respondents saying they watch multiple episodes of a TV show or two movies back to back. This type of content consumption is particularly popular in Latin America where 27% of those surveyed in Argentina said they binge once a day, 23% in Chile, 22% in Mexico, and 17% in Brazil. Only 10% of U.S. respondents binge view daily.
As a result, consumers want more storage. Approximately 62% said they felt frustrated because they had to delete content to make more space. "(The cloud) really allows you to expand the amount of storage needed, when required," Ruff said. "It is not like the DVR with a limited drive. Countries where consumers are frustrated, (reported) they are willing to pay more for a multituner recording device and for cloud storage."