Smart TV ownership jumped 20% between fall and spring, the adoption of smart mobile media devices continues to accelerate, and nearly one-fifth of Anglophones (16%) have now “tuned-out” traditional TV according to the newest Media Technology Adoption report from Media Technology Monitor (MTM).
The report identifies several emerging technologies, including growing adoption of the streaming media tool Google Chromecast (which is now used by 5% of Anglophones aged 18+), the continued evolution of the engaged social TV viewer (who now constitutes approximately 12% of the Anglophone population) and ongoing growth for Apple TV, which is now used by just over 10% of Anglophones.
Expanding technologies, which MTM defines as those technologies whose value proposition has become apparent to their intended audience, include Netflix (used by 44% of Anglophone Canadians), PVRs (49%) and tablets (52%).
The report lists cable and satellite TV among the declining technologies, and streaming audio, digital TV, smartphone and home internet as maturing.
It also identifies ultra HD – commonly known as 4K – as a technology that remains in the innovation stage, currently used by just 2% of the Anglophone population.
In its corresponding Top 5 Sneak Peek report, MTM said that fewer than half (45%) of Anglophones who purchased a TV set in the past year are familiar with the concept of ultra HD. At the same time, it said that the high cost of ultra HD TV’s is still likely deterring potential buyers.
Elsewhere, the percentage of Anglophones that have “tuned-out” of traditional TV has increased from 12% in the fall to 16% in the spring. At the same time, the use of video-on-demand technology has stabilized as services such as Netflix and other online streaming services take hold.
Nearly half of Anglophones now subscribe to Netflix, up from 32% a year earlier. MTM attributes the streaming video service’s growth to a combination of a strong library and its continued commission of original content.
At the same time, Netflix faces increased competition from the likes of Shomi (currently used by 6% of Rogers/Shaw customers) and CraveTV (used by 5% of Bell subscribers). In Shomi’s case, that number could be poised to grow following the recent decision to make the service available to non-Rogers/Shaw customers.
The incidence of people watching video clips and TV shows online has increased 4% since the fall, with 80% of those who watch online TV saying that they have watched an entire program in the past month.
Tablets also continue to make significant inroads in English Canada, with 52% of respondents saying they own a tablet – up from 45% a year earlier. Apple is by far the most popular tablet brand, accounting for nearly two thirds of all ownership.
In the Top 5 Sneak Peek report, MTM found that half of all Canadians own at least one Apple product. The survey was limited to iPads, iPhones and Apple TV, and did not include Mac computers.
More than 70% of Canadians (73%) now own smartphones, a number that is expected to rise as nearly all phones now being manufactured and sold meet the definition of a smartphone. Ownership of a regular cellphone has fallen from 24% of Anglophones in the spring of 2013 to just 12% in the most recent study.
The survey results are based on the spring 2015 survey of 2,041 Anglophones 18+ – including 337 cellphone only – across all regions of the country. The results are considered accurate within plus or minus 2.2% 19 times out of 20.
