Global study reveals teens reluctant to pay for online content

Online forms of entertainment are becoming increasingly popular among teenagers, with young people watching an average of 1.15 hours of online TV per day, according to new research from globalwebindex.

However, while online viewing among younger demographics is prolific, financial restraints are having a clear impact on online activities, with teenagers significantly less likely than their older counterparts to pay for content.

The results come from a global study examining the digital behaviours and attitudes of 16-19 year olds from 32 countries.

While 21% said that they would pay to download music, just 14% said they would purchase a TV/film streaming service. However, one in five watch Netflix on a monthly basis, rising to 58% in the US.

In contrast to financial restraints, teens are much less concerned about internet privacy so less likely to delete cookies; however, the research found that they are deploying other tools to control their internet experience, and are more likely than other internet users to be employing adblockers (one third).

Perhaps surprisingly, tablets are failing to gain traction among teen audiences.

In terms of device consumption, the research found that almost as many teens are getting online using mobiles as they are via PC/laptops, spending an average of three hours surfing the web on their mobile daily, with six in 10 second-screening via a mobile device while they watch TV and half using their smartphone for social networking.

While half of teenagers claim to watch a vlog each month, the research suggests that they are yet to become a serious brand advertisement channel, with less than 15% of teens saying that they discover brands through vlogs and just one in 10 turning to them when researching products.

With one fifth of teenagers watching branded videos on a monthly basis, the demographic is more likely than average to promote a brand online in exchange for exclusive content.