UK viewing TV less, but increasingly prepared to pay for content

UK consumers are increasingly prepared to pay for media content, despite spending less time watching TV and visiting social media sites compared with previous years, found the latest KPMG Media & Entertainment Barometer.

The report, which gauges trends and consumer sentiments towards new and traditional media, shows that UK media consumption in a range of areas has plateaued in recent months, while media spend is up across almost all categories of media, including traditional TV.

53% of respondents said that one of the advantages of online content was that they could access it for free, while 36% said that they prefer to access media online as it offers better ‘value for money’, compared to just 15% in 2009.

However, just over one fifth of respondents said that they still don’t have a fast enough internet connection to make online media an enjoyable experience.

“Although UK consumers have been brought up on a diet of free digital content, attitudes are slowly beginning to change. UK consumers are beginning to acknowledge the perks of paying for the digital content,” said David Elms, Head of Media at KPMG.

“This mind shift has happened before. As a nation, we moved from license-fee paid terrestrial TV to multiple channel choices on subscription-based satellite and cable television.

“The delivery mechanisms for effective digital consumption of media – technology, networks and spectrum – exist and are constantly upgrading, with 4G networks now rolling out nationally. It is up to the media companies to continue to respond with pricing strategies and content that consumers want to embrace.”

Elms added that the challenge for many media providers is that they are yet to establish a loyal digital customer base, with the majority of media providers currently trying to monetise content by appealing to the mass audience.

“The danger is that they effectively give away content for free and bring down their margins,” Elms said. “They need to become more sophisticated by looking at and understanding both the content they have and the consumers who use it to develop a more targeted proposition and pricing model.”