Brits embracing media convergence

by Jan Harris

A new report released today, “Converging Media: The Olswang Convergence Consumer Survey 2008″, suggests that Brits are rapidly adopting converged services such as the BBC iPlayer, Sky+ and on demand TV services.

According to the report, this marks a fundamental change in people’s relationship with television and movies, with increasing demand for free content that people can watch at a time convenient to them.

The report suggests that this presents opportunities for content owners and other businesses to profit from a “Digital Britain”.

Olswang’s fourth annual survey, which was conducted in conjunction with YouGov, involved 1,162 British consumers, and was supported by a series of in-depth online focus groups.

People were divided into four groups for the purposes of the survey, the Tech Vanguard, the Kids (13 to 15 year olds), the Mainstream and the Laggards.

The BBC’s iPlayer was found to be the most popular way of watching online TV, with 69% of those surveyed using it more than other online services.

iPlayer was particularly popular with the Tech Vanguard, with more than 40% of this group using iPlayer at least one hour a week.

The Tech Vanguard was also the group most likely to watch progammes on their TV from other sources, such as DVD recorders, digital video recorders (DVRs) and personal video recorders (PVRs).

The Laggards were most resistant to online television services, preferring to keep their computer for surfing, email, and other activities.

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