2001 UK TV Viewing Fell For First Time Since 1994, Says Carat Report

The report shows that average viewing per household fell to 213 minutes per day in 2001, down from 216 minutes a year earlier. The downward trend is explained mainly by the rise in use of other home entertainment systems like games consoles and DVD players.

However, one of the key reasons why the figures are down comes from a drop in viewing from children aged 4-9. “For this age group, TV viewing is the inverse of their ability to play outside,” says Guy Abrahams, strategy director at Carat. “This is most effected by the weather which was surprisingly good last year.”

Official annual BARB figures, not yet available for 2001, put 2000’s weekly average viewing at 1,547 minutes – 221 minutes per day. The greatest loss since 1994 has been felt at ITV, which had shed 143 minutes’ viewing from its 1994 weekly viewing average by 2000 – a 24.0% decline, as the charts show.

Average Weekly TV Viewing, All UK Homes
								1994-2000
Station	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	Actual Change	% Change
BBC1	489	487	491	466	447	436	420	-69	-14.1
BBC2	160	168	174	175	172	165	167	7	4.4
ITV	596	563	530	497	481	480	453	-143	-24.0
Channel 4/S4C	162	159	162	160	157	158	162	0	0.0
Channel 5	n/a	n/a	n/a	43	64	82	88	n/a	n/a
Others	103	132	150	178	196	216	257	154	149.5
Source: BARB, MediaTel.co.uk