We are training a new generation of viewers who can binge-watch a couple of new movie releases or an entire series for the whole day. Content providers have lured media consumers with a promise of no commercial gaps and the availability of their program, anytime, anywhere as long as they have an Internet connection.
This prompted digital experts and online sages to suggest that online streaming, video sharing sites, and video-on-demand services have pushed television aside. But is this really the case?
While most kids now are digitally savvy and the entire generation is shifting into a more digital environment, in a latest study commissioned by Turner Asia Pacific, a media conglomerate that is a division of Time Warner and manages the collection of cable television networks including CNN, Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, Toonami, Warner TV, and Boomerang, to name a few, they have found out that despite an increase on online viewership, TV remains the number 1 media used by kids.
“Interestingly, this is the case across all other markets we surveyed, kids spend more hours watching TV than watching online videos on Youtube, with a 20 percent difference between the amount of time spent on the two platforms,” David Webb, director of Research and Planning at Turner Asia Pacific told Manila Standard in an exclusive interview.
The Hong Kong-based executive, who delivers research, insight and strategy for Turner’s Kids and Entertainment brands in Asia Pacific, explained that Kids’ TV channels are still the most trusted while Youtube and mobile websites are the most concerning platforms, especially with music, explicit lyrics and music videos.
The survey is called New Generations. It is a regular report that analyzes the habits and preferences of today’s young Filipinos. It is a pioneering survey that seeks to better understand kids’ lifestyles – their values, aspirations, media habits, consumption, pocket money, opinions, preferences and parental influence.
“There are a lot of talks that TV is dead and that the Internet has taken over but parents and kids see watching TV as more of a family time. TV is a more shared type of experience,” Webb stated.
Webb works closely with the content, brand, and commercial teams to assist with on-going network strategy development, delivering relevant tools and commissioning appropriate studies to service business needs. As part of this, he manages Turner’s acclaimed New Generations research – one of the largest sets of studies of lifestyles and opinions of kids and families in Asia Pacific – and other bespoke, in-house initiatives.
“Our study shows that almost 20 percent of parents are more concerned with YouTube than they are with kids’ TV channels,” he revealed.
He also said that on average, Filipino kids spend more than 5 hours watching TV per day. The data came Kantar TNS.
“For the 2017 report, we interviewed more than 500 child-parent pairs from the emerging middle-class market in Mega Manila area, with the kids aged 4 to 14. For whatever reason, Filipino children get to spend more time at home compared to other markets that’s why they have more opportunity to watch TV,” the executive shared.
Watching online video has massively increased this year and that’s consistent on all the markets that New Generations surveyed. Apart from the Philippines, the sample markets included Malaysia, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand.
“In the survey, we’ve discovered that there are a lot of at-home activities involved, in the Philippines playing toys is first and reading books comes second, while in other markets it’s playing sport,” he said.
Amid the prevalence of traditional media though, Turner was able to create a bridge between their TV content and digital media. They have launched multiple campaigns ranging from augmented reality games to promotional activities to promote their programs.
“And so far, these efforts have complemented our goal to keep children from watching our contents through traditional platform, which is TV,” Webb concluded.
