Total digital reception in UK households is at 64.2%, up by 10% from 54.4% at the beginning of 2004, according to the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising’s (IPA) latest Trends in Television Report.
Non-terrestrial viewing remained at 30% for the second successive quarter, seeing a year on year increase of 2.5%. The strong bias of the non-terrestrial audience remained a key feature, with 48.5% of under 16s viewing digital channels.
BBC1 managed to push its share of viewers up by 1.1% points quarter on quarter, seeing a share of 23.3% in Q4 2005. ITV1 continued the upward trend, enjoying a share of 22.3% in Q4, up from 20.5% in Q3 2005.
Channel 4 did not fair so well, with share falling by 2.3% points quarter on quarter, dropping to 8.7% in Q4, from 11% in Q3 2005.
The average daily hours of viewing for 2005 as a whole also fell, dipping to 3.65 hours, from 3.71 in 2004.
Commenting on the results, Lynne Robinson, research director for the IPA, said: “Nearly two thirds of all television households can now receive digital television, a growth of 10% points during 2005. Digital’s share of viewing has also increased to around 30%, a growth of 2.5% points over 2005.”
The latest figures from Freeview revealed that sales of set top boxes and integrated televisions have passed the 10 million mark, with the service currently present in 6.4 million UK homes (see Freeview Sales Pass 10 Million).
Commercial multichannel broadcasters are increasing their presence in the television arena, with total penetration of the market reported to be at 69%. According to the latest forecasts from Billets Media commercial audiences will grow by 2% in 2006, fuelled by an advance in Freeview adoption (see Billetts Forecasts Mild Growth In UK TV And Print Media).
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