TV – the saviour in times of crisis
For some years now all we have heard is “TV is a dying medium”, and that “no one watches TV anymore”. The rise of on-demand and streaming platforms like Netflix and TVNZ OnDemand have created new consumer viewing behaviours designed to celebrate uninterrupted binge watching with content arriving weekly if not daily. The reason to turn on our TV sets has seemingly waned. With traditional TV being on a schedule with allocated, non-personalised ad breaks and no loyalty scheme or profile options, how are we still tuning in? Well, the stats prove that we are.
The reach of TV is still unparalleled:
- 95% of New Zealand homes (1,755,000) have a television
- Every week TV reaches 73% of New Zealanders 5+ (3.2 million Kiwis)
- Every day TV reaches 55% of New Zealanders 5+ (2.4 million of us)
- New Zealanders spend 2 hours 16 minutes per day watching TV
- 89% of linear TV is watched live, suggesting us Kiwi’s like to be tuned-in in real time.
In comparison, GWI shows that 67% of Kiwis aged 14-64 have accessed Netflix in the last 30 days and 48% have accessed TVNZ On Demand.
In this time of COVID-19 crisis, Kiwis have been returning to the “good old box” to keep them entertained and informed while we are all locked down in our homes. Over the first four weeks of NZ’s lockdown, we have seen an increase in total TV viewing against All People aged 25-54 of c. 40% versus the month prior. A big chunk of this growth has come from us all wanting to stay informed and following (viewing) all “News” format programming in peak and off peak zones.
All time zones, genders and ages are showing an increase.
With more Kiwis at home during the day, they are looking to TV for companionship, entertainment and information.
With Level 4 Lockdown set to move to Level 3 at 1159 next Mon 27 April, Kiwis are still effectively confined to their homes and immediate postcodes…hopefully they will continue their rekindled love affair with the main screen in their living room and keep those viewing levels up.
