OTT grows in Canada
October 5, 2011
The appetite Canadians show for Over the Top (OTT) broadband TV services is substantial and growing. A new cable industry association report says 48 per cent of Canadians have watched a movie or TV series episode online.
Such research underscores additional industry analysis that also shows Internet users will up- and download 1.2 million petabytes of data per year by 2015, around seven times more than in 2010 – the vast majority of it video and media content.
In its inaugural In Touch research study on the topic, the Cable Telecommunications Association for Marketing (Canada) has found the percentage of Canadian consumers who claimed to have watched video content online reached 48 per cent in June, with the highest usage amongst males (51 per cent) 18-34 year-olds (71 per cent) and those with no television service providers (56 per cent).
Television still counts some 58 per cent of Canadians, but non-broadcast media accounts for 28 per cent of Canadians’ viewing with 13 per cent specifically indicating use online.
Men (32 per cent), 18-34 year olds (46 per cent) and those with no television service provider (54 per cent) are most likely to avail themselves of these television alternatives.
The survey also reports that 93 per cent of Canadians are aware of Netflix with a reported paying Canadian subscriber base of 11 per cent with an additional 8 per cent on a “free trial”, bringing total Netflix subscriptions up to 19 per cent. While Apple TV has achieved a moderate awareness (39 per cent), ownership is low (3 per cent) and significantly lags behind Netflix subscription levels.
“This research shows that today’s consumers are savvy and look to a multitude of options to view video content. Although linear broadcast remains the dominant platform, a significant number of customers watch video content on various end-user platforms that take advantage of both place and time shifting technologies. Canadian Cable operators will need to continue to evolve their multiplatform video offerings to meet the ever changing needs of their diverse customer bases,” said Aivy Reinfelds, President of CTAM Canada.
The data for this study was obtained from an online survey conducted among 2,000 Canadians, aged 18+, from June 23rd – July 6th, 2011. Data have been weighted according to age, gender and region to reflect the population of Canadian adults and results are considered accurate to +/- 2.2 per cent.
CTAM Canada is the Canadian chapter of the Cable Telecommunications Association for Marketing (CTAM), a non-profit organization dedicated to helping the cable business grow by providing marketing, education and networking opportunities to more than 5,500 members.