November 2, 2018
Sports drive global live TV streaming to 54% YoY growth
Research by Conviva has revealed what the company calls ‘staggering’ growth in globalTV streaming.
According to the Conviva State of the Streaming TV Industry Report for Q3 2018, viewers are increasingly demanding a seamless streaming experience, and publishers are rising to the challenge to deliver higher overall quality of experience. It showed that there has been a 52% jump in plays and 63% growth in total viewing hours recorded year-over-year(YoY), including a major increase in traffic during the World Cup football tournament.
As viewers become more demanding, they were less tolerant of a poor experience, and were seen to be shifting to platforms and devices that offer a better experience, trading PC viewing in favor of connected TVs and individual publisher apps for virtual multichannel video programming distributor (MVPDs) with bundled offerings. Virtual MVPDs are becoming more attractive, with 292% more plays and 212% more viewing hours YoY in the U.S., drawing significant share away from publisher apps by offering bundled content with better quality delivery, resulting in higher engagement.The measurement shows that connected TVs now form more than 50% of global viewing and virtual MVPDs make up 75% of all US viewing. mobile growth has slowed in favor of connected TVs, which experienced a 145% growth in plays and a 103% growth in viewing hours.The report also showed that live sports streaming has surged, as viewer confidence in streaming TV grows and providers deliver improved quality. NFL streaming in September alone accounted for roughly 3% of total streaming plays and viewing hours in the US, asmore fans than ever elected to stream NFL games.
