Internet consumption closing gap on TV in NZ, Australia
September 20, 2013
New Zealanders are spending more time than ever on the Internet, but traditional media still plays an important role in their lives, according to findings in a Digital Universe report from Roy Morgan Research. In fact TV, radio and print still account for 71.4 per cent of the time Kiwis spend with media per day.
Overall, New Zealanders spend an average 7 hours and 54 minutes a day consuming traditional and digital media, significantly more than Australians (7 hours 15 minutes). While a marginally higher percentage of Australians (94.2 per cent) than New Zealanders (92.8 per cent) watch TV in an average seven-day period, Kiwis spend more time watching it: an average of 2:48 each day, compared to Aussies’ 2:40. This slightly elevated viewing time may be related to the fact that more than half (50.9 per cent) of the New Zealand population subscribe to pay-TV – whereas less than one in three Australians (28.8 per cent) are subscribers.
While TV is currently the media New Zealanders and Australians spend most time with each day, the Internet is closing the gap, with people from both countries spending more than 30 per cent more time online than they did in 2009.
In the six months to June 2013, Kiwis spent an average 2:15 online per day (up from 1:42 in the six months to June 2009), marginally less than Aussies (2:28, up from 1:39). Meanwhile, average TV viewing times declined on both sides of the Tasman. Of course, many people are online at the same time as they’re watching TV (posting Facebook updates during the ad breaks for example), so there can be some crossover in the time they spend with each medium.
Pip Elliott, General Manager, Roy Morgan Research NZ, says: “For two countries that are so similar in many ways, New Zealand and Australia show some interesting differences in their consumption of media. While penetration of many media is more widespread in Australia, New Zealanders tend to spend more time with them (with the exception of the internet).
“The average daily time Kiwis spend online has shot up since 2009, while the time we spend watching TV has declined (despite our very healthy pay-TV subscription rate) and we expect that the Internet will eventually take over as the media we spend most time with.”