You can double the advertising. It’s the access that matters more. That’s what new research by comScore found when consumers were asked why they watch video online and how much advertising they’re willing to accept. Viewers said they turn to Web video for convenience moreso than for pure cord-cutting. A majority of Web video viewers are using the Internet as one big DVR, with 71 percent of consumers saying they went online to watch a program they had missed when it aired on traditional linear TV. It’s a matter of convenience, cited by 57 percent as their motivation.
There is still some resistance to too much advertising in online video, but not as much as many in the entertainment industry assume. While 38 percent said they choose to watch online because there are fewer commercials, overall sentiment is much more tolerant. The report came up with specific numbers: six to seven minutes of ads are okay with viewers. That’s a glass barely half full, with most programmers inserting just four minutes of ads into an hour of Web video–much lower than the 16 minutes we see on traditional TV. Do the math, and it’s easy to see that video content owners could double their advertising revenue without losing online audience.
As the convergence of online and linear TV continues, content delivery business models will continue to evolve. It’s likely that some combination of ad-support, subscriptions and video-on-demand purchases will remain in play. No matter how the changes in entertainment distribution play out, the entertainment industry must ultimately address consumers’ growing appetite for the convenience of Internet TV. When more content is available online, more revenue opportunities result.
The findings in comScore’s new report, “Blurring the Landscape, How TV is Merging Digital and Traditional Media” were presented at this week’s Advertising Research Foundation convention and were summarized in an article by ClickZ .
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