Multiscreen viewership set to rocket

By 2020, the average person will watch TV and video content at least once a month on 2.13 devices, up from 1.14 in 2010, according to Digital TV Research’s Multiscreen TV & Video Forecasts report.

By 2020, 3.98 billion people will watch content via a PC or laptop over a fixed broadband connection; up by 80% on 2013, according to the report. Smartphones viewers will total 1.53 billion people; triple the 2013 total. Tablet viewers will be 1.10 billion by 2020; five times the 2013 total. Although it will continue to be the dominant device, both by viewers and by duration watched, TV sets’ share of total viewers will fall from 73% in 2010 to 42% in 2020.

According to the report global gross multiscreen viewers – with one individual watching video on two devices defined as two ‘viewers’ – will reach 11.32 billion by 2020, up from 5.6 billion in 2010.

In these terms, China will have 2,890 million ‘viewers’ by 2020, up from 1,483 million in 2010. India will supply a further 2,347 million by 2020. India will add nearly one billion gross viewers between 2014 and 2020, with China adding 897 million.

“By 2020, the average person will watch TV and video content [at least once a month] on 2.13 devices, up from 1.14 in 2010 and 1.53 in 2014 – to put it another way, people will view content on more than two devices in 2020, up from just over one in 2010. Australia (2.88) will be the leading country by viewing devices per person in 2020. In fact, 13 countries will be above 2.80,” said report author Simon Murray.