ITV

Tag: 4oD

  • 44% adults used Internet TV via STBS in the last 12 months: Ofcom

    44% adults used Internet TV via STBS in the last 12 months: Ofcom

    MUMBAI: Close to 44 per cent (over four in ten) adults in the UK had used an internet connected TV – most via set-top boxes such as TiVo or Sky – in the last 12 months. Some 34 per cent had watched catch-up TV services via connected TVs or set-top boxes.

     

    Moreover, Ofcom’s research into UK audience attitudes to content on TV and radio showed that households surveyed owned two TV sets on average.

     

    This research covered what people find offensive on TV and radio, their awareness of and attitudes towards regulation and their understanding of advertising and product placement.

     

    The report also includes research on consumers’ access to and views on internet ‘connected devices’, which are used to watch services like the BBC iPlayer, 4oD, ITV Player, YouTube and Netflix.

     

    The research further found that nearly half (49 per cent) of adult TV viewers felt the quality of TV programmes had stayed the same in the past year, three in ten (30 per cent) felt they had got worse, and around 16 per cent said TV had improved.

     

    Among those who thought programmes had got worse, the top reasons were repeats (57 per cent), a lack of variety (43 per cent), a general lack of quality (32 per cent) and too many reality shows (30 per cent). Among those who said programmes had improved, the top reasons were a wider range of shows (50 per cent), improved quality (48 per cent), more entertaining shows (37 per cent) and better dramas (33 per cent).

     

    Offensive material on TV

     

    Close to 79 per cent people had not been offended by anything on TV in the past year. However, one in five had found something offensive, rising to a third (33 per cent) for people aged 65 and over. Those aged between 16 and 24 were least likely to be offended (nine per cent compared with 33 per cent of over 65s).

     

    Of those who had been offended, bad language (44 per cent), violence (41 per cent) and sexual content (41 per cent) were the top concerns. Adults below 45 years old were more likely to say they had been offended by some type of discrimination (29 per cent compared with 19 per cent of over-45s).

     

    On average, about half of all people thought current levels of sex (57 per cent), violence (47 per cent) and swearing (52 per cent) on TV were acceptable. Four in ten felt there was too much violence (43 per cent) and swearing (40 per cent), while nearly three in ten (28 per cent) said there was too much sex.

     

    Attitudes differed by age: younger adults were more likely to feel there is an acceptable amount of violence, swearing and sex, while older adults tended to feel there is too much.

     

    High awareness of regulation

     

    The vast majority of adult TV viewers (90 per cent) knew about the 9 pm watershed, with over half (57 per cent) saying about 9 pm was the right time while around a quarter (27 per cent) said the watershed should be later.

     

    The report found a clear understanding about what broadcast content is regulated, with over eight in ten (82 per cent) adults aware that TV is regulated. Most adults felt the current levels of TV and radio regulation were about right (61 per cent), or did not have an opinion (18 per cent for TV and 33 per cent for radio).

     

    The research showed that 14 per cent of adult TV viewers could identify the ‘P’ symbol, which is designed to let viewers know the channel, or the programme-maker, has been paid to include products in that programme.

     

    Protecting viewers

     

    Ofcom has a duty to protect viewers from harmful and offensive material on TV and radio, as well as ‘TV like’ content on internet connected devices. When broadcasters break the rules, Ofcom takes robust enforcement action and has issued guidance to broadcasters on how they should enforce the watershed.

     

    The majority of viewing today is live on the TV and many of the programmes delivered over the internet to connected devices in the UK were first aired on TV; because of this, they are subject to Ofcom’s rules.

     

    However, people now watch programmes in a variety of ways, and on different devices, which poses challenges for parents and regulators. Hence, Ofcom is working with government, other regulators and industry to bring about a common framework for media standards.

  • Sky adds 4oD catch-up service to NOW TV Box

    Sky adds 4oD catch-up service to NOW TV Box

    MUMBAI: Channel 4’s 4oD has become the latest terrestrial catch-up TV service to launch on Sky’s NOW TV Box, which already offers access to BBC iPlayer and Channel 5’s Demand 5.

    Shows such as Homeland, Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Made in Chelsea as well as box sets from classic series such as Black Books, Father Ted and Peep Show are now available on demand for owners of the NOW TV Box. This adds more than 3,000 hours of content to the service for customers to enjoy at no extra cost. NOW TV also offers catch-up entertainment from Sky Atlantic, Fox, Discovery and Comedy Central.

    NOW TV director Gidon Katz commented in a report: “The NOW TV Box provides millions of people with the opportunity to transform their regular TV into a Smart TV for less than a tenner. There is now even more to watch. The launch of 4oD means the NOW TV Box delivers an even bigger choice of on-demand TV. It’s available alongside flexible pay-as-you-go access to must-see sport, the latest movies you missed at the cinema and the TV shows everyone’s talking about. Offering convenient, contract-free accesses to such outstanding content, no wonder that NOW TV Boxes have been flying off the shelves.”

    Channel 4 director of commercial and business development Laurence Dawkin-Jones added: “Bringing 4oD on the NOW TV Box represents the latest device launch in a busy year for Channel 4 that has seen us extend our content reach to many new platforms. We’re always looking for new places we can ensure our viewers can enjoy our popular on-demand service, and are delighted to add this to the portfolio.”

  • Thinkbox: Portable devices account for 1.5% of TV viewing

    Thinkbox: Portable devices account for 1.5% of TV viewing

    MUMBAI: New TV viewing figures from Thinkbox reveal that 98.5 per cent of television viewing is still done on the traditional TV set in the UK, while 1.5 per cent is on other screens such as tablets and mobile devices.

    The average daily TV viewing in the UK (during January to June 2013) was four hours, one minute a day per person. This was comprised of three hours, 58 minutes a day of linear TV on a TV set – this is three minutes a day less than the same period last year – and three minutes, 30 seconds a day via devices such as tablets, smartphones and laptops. The majority of this is on-demand viewing, with some live streams.

    Viewing on non-TV devices via established services such as ITV Player, Sky Go, 4OD and BBC iPlayer, as well as new services like Dave on-demand, accounted for 1.5 per cent of overall TV viewing in the country during the first half of 2013. This is a slight increase from the full-year figure for 2012, when it accounted for 1.2 per cent.

    According to Broadcasters’ Audience Research Board (BARB), it’s estimated that 58 per cent of households own digital TV recorders, and in these homes 83.8 per cent of linear TV was watched live during the period, down from the 84.4 per cent in the same period a year ago. Also, 81 per cent of all time shifted viewing is watched within two days of recording, while 47 per cent is seen within 24 hours of it being recorded. BARB’s figures suggest that the growth in the number of TVs that is recorded and played back is slowing down.