Renaissance For Interactive TV Ads?
StumbleUponInteractive TV advertising is enjoying a renewed popularity, according to Continental Research's Autumn 2005 Digital TV Report. So what are the trends in multichannel and the forecasts for take-up?
Interactive television advertising is enjoying a renewed
popularity, according to Continental Research’s Autumn
(September) 2005 Digital TV Report*.
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In the Spring 2005 report, the number of people in Sky Digital homes who interacted with a TV commercial had fallen from 19% in July 2004 to 17%. After what now looks like a hiccup, iTV has exhibited growth in the last six months - 21% of people interacted with a TV ad, with 25-34 year olds the most likely (30%, up from 24%), followed by 35-44 year olds (26%, up from 24%) and 16-24 year olds (24%, up from 11%).
Jon Beaumont, director at Continental Research, said: “These results are very encouraging for the future success of iTV advertising. Renewed interest, particularly amongst younger viewers, could be attributed to a more diverse and youth-orientated set of iTV ads, including films, mobile phones and car ads.”
Scope for mobile & iTV fusion
“This should tempt more advertisers to test the medium, promote the creative debate amongst advertising agencies and further improve new styles of advertising,” he continued. “It is likely that advertisers aiming at the youth market - such as mobile phone companies - will be keen to look at new iTV possibilities, for example, downloads that can be requested on a TV screen and sent direct to a mobile device.”
“Pressing the red button was by far the most preferred method of interaction, 49%, over text (7%) and using the telephone (14%). There may be a fear of premium rate charges that is deterring people from choosing text, especially given recent negative publicity about exorbitant prices for services such as ringtones.”
Multichannel television increasing in popularity
There has been a healthy increase in the number of homes receiving multichannel TV via dish, cable or digital terrestrial services, with numbers having jumped radically over the past two years from 45% to 66% - 16.6 million households - a growth mainly fuelled by Freeview, the digital terrestrial service.”
Continued publicity for Freeview, no doubt helped by the launch of E4 on the platform in May 2005 coinciding with the start of Big Brother 6 – is pushing digital TV penetration towards the Government’s goal of 95%.”
Forecasts for take-up
The fastest growing platform in the foreseeable future will be Freeview. Continental predicts it will reach 6.9m homes in the next 12 months. However, Sky will remain dominant and is likely to make its eight million forecast homes by the end of 2005 and around 8.3m homes by the end of 2006.
Some growth for cable is predicted, but whether it will materialise in such a competitive market will have to be seen. Of course, some digital cable growth will stem from analogue cable upgrades but it is suspected that new growth will be stunted and lower than data may suggest especially given recent trends i.e. sluggish growth.
The overall potential market for digital TV is around 17.9 million homes (72% of all homes). This potential comprises all those with digital TV now and those almost certain or very or quite likely to subscribe (to Sky or cable) or buy a box (for Freeview). It excludes FreeSat.
Launch of FreeSat
Sky’s free satellite service FreeSat soft launched October 2004, and Continental estimates that around 450,000 now have satellite TV via a dish but are not paying a subscription, i.e. just receiving free-to-air channels. To receive the service requires a £150 one-off payment for installation of a satellite dish and set top box. The service consists of around 120 TV channels and covers 97% of the UK. This compares to a £50 one-off payment for Freeview that has 30 TV channels and around 75% coverage.
The BBC and ITV have just launched their version, confusingly also called FreeSat, and will also provide subscription-free digital television via satellite mainly to viewers in parts of the UK currently unable to access the free digital terrestrial television (DTT) service Freeview.
The service, which aims to be operational by the first half of 2006, will initially carry all ITV and BBC free-to-view digital services including digital television, digital radio, electronic programme guide, and interactive services, plus dozens of other free-to-air channels.
Beaumont added: “Sky’s FreeSat launch was modest and aimed at regions where Freeview does not have coverage or where there is latent demand. However modest the launch, if Sky’s past performance is anything to go by; FreeSat could soon be making bigger waves in the industry. The entry of a BBC/ITV version will pose a challenge to Sky but may also offer long term opportunities. Like Freeview, it will provide people with a taste of multichannel TV and could act as a stepping stone to Sky’s subscription service.”
Also in the report
• Demographic profiles of adults with digital TV
• PVRs – likelihood of buying
• Alternative TV access devices: mobile and internet
Methodology:
This report is based on data collected from 2,135 face to face interviews with a representative sample of UK adults aged 16 years or more. The respondents were selected according to a two-stage random location sample designed to be representative of all adults aged 16 years or more. Interlocking quota controls were set for sex, working status and presence of children, and weighting was subsequently applied to sex, age, social grade and region – in a 72 cell matrix - to make the profile representative of the adult population. All interviewing was carried out in-home using CAPI (Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing) during the third week of July 2005.
* In addition to the Digital TV Report, Continental Research also issues six-monthly reports on the mobile telephone market, the Internet market and into the growing area of e-commerce. The reports cost £175 + VAT but are free to journalists.
ORDERING THE REPORT:
For further information contact Amanda Harrison. Tel 01296 660 294, email ah@amandaharrisonmedia.co.uk or visit www.continentalresearch.com
[Register and post your own comments on this story below...]
In the Spring 2005 report, the number of people in Sky Digital homes who interacted with a TV commercial had fallen from 19% in July 2004 to 17%. After what now looks like a hiccup, iTV has exhibited growth in the last six months - 21% of people interacted with a TV ad, with 25-34 year olds the most likely (30%, up from 24%), followed by 35-44 year olds (26%, up from 24%) and 16-24 year olds (24%, up from 11%).
Jon Beaumont, director at Continental Research, said: “These results are very encouraging for the future success of iTV advertising. Renewed interest, particularly amongst younger viewers, could be attributed to a more diverse and youth-orientated set of iTV ads, including films, mobile phones and car ads.”
Scope for mobile & iTV fusion
“This should tempt more advertisers to test the medium, promote the creative debate amongst advertising agencies and further improve new styles of advertising,” he continued. “It is likely that advertisers aiming at the youth market - such as mobile phone companies - will be keen to look at new iTV possibilities, for example, downloads that can be requested on a TV screen and sent direct to a mobile device.”
“Pressing the red button was by far the most preferred method of interaction, 49%, over text (7%) and using the telephone (14%). There may be a fear of premium rate charges that is deterring people from choosing text, especially given recent negative publicity about exorbitant prices for services such as ringtones.”
Multichannel television increasing in popularity
There has been a healthy increase in the number of homes receiving multichannel TV via dish, cable or digital terrestrial services, with numbers having jumped radically over the past two years from 45% to 66% - 16.6 million households - a growth mainly fuelled by Freeview, the digital terrestrial service.”
Continued publicity for Freeview, no doubt helped by the launch of E4 on the platform in May 2005 coinciding with the start of Big Brother 6 – is pushing digital TV penetration towards the Government’s goal of 95%.”
Forecasts for take-up
The fastest growing platform in the foreseeable future will be Freeview. Continental predicts it will reach 6.9m homes in the next 12 months. However, Sky will remain dominant and is likely to make its eight million forecast homes by the end of 2005 and around 8.3m homes by the end of 2006.
Some growth for cable is predicted, but whether it will materialise in such a competitive market will have to be seen. Of course, some digital cable growth will stem from analogue cable upgrades but it is suspected that new growth will be stunted and lower than data may suggest especially given recent trends i.e. sluggish growth.
The overall potential market for digital TV is around 17.9 million homes (72% of all homes). This potential comprises all those with digital TV now and those almost certain or very or quite likely to subscribe (to Sky or cable) or buy a box (for Freeview). It excludes FreeSat.
Launch of FreeSat
Sky’s free satellite service FreeSat soft launched October 2004, and Continental estimates that around 450,000 now have satellite TV via a dish but are not paying a subscription, i.e. just receiving free-to-air channels. To receive the service requires a £150 one-off payment for installation of a satellite dish and set top box. The service consists of around 120 TV channels and covers 97% of the UK. This compares to a £50 one-off payment for Freeview that has 30 TV channels and around 75% coverage.
The BBC and ITV have just launched their version, confusingly also called FreeSat, and will also provide subscription-free digital television via satellite mainly to viewers in parts of the UK currently unable to access the free digital terrestrial television (DTT) service Freeview.
The service, which aims to be operational by the first half of 2006, will initially carry all ITV and BBC free-to-view digital services including digital television, digital radio, electronic programme guide, and interactive services, plus dozens of other free-to-air channels.
Beaumont added: “Sky’s FreeSat launch was modest and aimed at regions where Freeview does not have coverage or where there is latent demand. However modest the launch, if Sky’s past performance is anything to go by; FreeSat could soon be making bigger waves in the industry. The entry of a BBC/ITV version will pose a challenge to Sky but may also offer long term opportunities. Like Freeview, it will provide people with a taste of multichannel TV and could act as a stepping stone to Sky’s subscription service.”
Also in the report
• Demographic profiles of adults with digital TV
• PVRs – likelihood of buying
• Alternative TV access devices: mobile and internet
Methodology:
This report is based on data collected from 2,135 face to face interviews with a representative sample of UK adults aged 16 years or more. The respondents were selected according to a two-stage random location sample designed to be representative of all adults aged 16 years or more. Interlocking quota controls were set for sex, working status and presence of children, and weighting was subsequently applied to sex, age, social grade and region – in a 72 cell matrix - to make the profile representative of the adult population. All interviewing was carried out in-home using CAPI (Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing) during the third week of July 2005.
* In addition to the Digital TV Report, Continental Research also issues six-monthly reports on the mobile telephone market, the Internet market and into the growing area of e-commerce. The reports cost £175 + VAT but are free to journalists.
ORDERING THE REPORT:
For further information contact Amanda Harrison. Tel 01296 660 294, email ah@amandaharrisonmedia.co.uk or visit www.continentalresearch.com
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