Future of TV distribution audience research
A report from Revealing Reality considering the future of TV distribution and the barriers, motivations, and preferences of TV viewers.
Documents
Details
As TV consumption continues to evolve, more households are incorporating internet-based TV (IPTV) into their viewing habits, often alongside traditional platforms such as digital terrestrial television (DTT), cable, or satellite. Over the next decade, the number of IPTV only and hybrid households is expected to grow, gradually becoming the majority.
At the same time, maintaining the DTT network is becoming increasingly costly and less sustainable. The infrastructure costs remain broadly fixed, meaning that as the number of DTT viewers declines, the cost per remaining viewer rises. While a natural shift towards IPTV is expected, a significant number of households still rely solely on DTT, and without government intervention, some groups may find it difficult to adopt IPTV.
To inform future policy decisions, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport commissioned this research to understand the barriers, motivations, and preferences of TV viewers – particularly those who are currently unconnected to IPTV or have only recently made the switch. This research explores:
- The barriers preventing DTT viewers from adopting IPTV
- The motivations and enablers that led recently connected viewers to make the switch
- How these factors vary across different demographic groups
- How potential market developments or policy interventions might affect viewers