2014 ARRIS Research Reveals Consumers are Finding New Ways to Get Entertainment on Their Terms

SUWANEE, Ga., May 28, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The ARRIS 2014 Consumer Entertainment Index, launched today, reveals consumer demand for personalized entertainment is driving several key trends in global content consumption, with significant implications for tomorrow's entertainment services.

Broadcast TV remains the staple of in-home entertainment, with a nearly universal 96% penetration rate and new implications for multiscreen and multi-room viewing. The vast majority of consumers are engaged in binge-TV viewing: 80% now watching multiple TV episodes or even an entire series in a single sitting. Meanwhile, a growing aversion to traditional TV advertising is opening the door for multiscreen merchandising. And the biggest challenge of today's multiscreen world may be finding the space to save everything we want to watch.

ARRIS's Consumer Entertainment Index is an independent study of global media consumption habits, surveying 10,500 consumers from 19 countries. The study tracks engagement with various components of the entertainment experience—including multiscreen, advertising, and DVR—to offer insight into the trends that are driving the evolution of content consumption.

Key findings from the ARRIS Consumer Entertainment Index:

• Consumers turn TV-binging into a habit: 80% admit to 'binge-viewing' entertainment, while 14% admit to binge-viewing at least once a day.
• Traditional TV advertising is a turn-off; consumers shift attention to program-related purchases: 60% of consumers record entertainment to skip the ads. 41% said that ads on their smartphone are intrusive. However, 17% of consumers use secondary devices to purchase products featured on the programs they watch.
• Consumers love entertainment in the living room but are 'tuned-in' in the bedroom: Broadcast TV is here to stay, but carries new implications for multiscreen and multi-room viewing. Globally, the living room remains the most popular room for viewing TV, while 41% of tablet owners now use their tablets in the bedroom to watch entertainment.
• In 2014, households argue over not what to watch but what to delete: 62% of DVR owners say they have to delete programs because they ran out of space, despite 28% of recorded content having never been watched. 52% said they recorded content to skip the parts of the program they didn't like.

Sandy Howe, SVP, Global Marketing, ARRIS, commented: "The rapid growth of mobile devices, increasing reach of high-speed broadband networks, and ease of content access is reshaping the way people engage with entertainment. Consumers now expect entertainment on their terms—control over what they watch, when and where they watch it.

"Our Consumer Entertainment Index found that consumers express these expectations in the ways they engage with entertainment in the home. We've found a healthy appetite for traditional forms of entertainment, like broadcast TV, and this serves as the foundation for new ways of consuming that content—like multiscreen, multi-room, and binge-viewing. Meanwhile, we're seeing an uptick in conversion on second-screen merchandising. These trends underscore an opportunity for service providers to offer more personalized services and program-related content that address this shift in engagement," Howe continued.

BINGING HAS BECOME A HABIT
Binge-viewing has gone mainstream and is especially popular with women and younger audiences in the living room.

• 80% admit to 'binge-viewing' entertainment. One in five (18%) 25-34 year-olds binge-view once a week. 14% of respondents say they binge at least once a day.
• The most popular way to binge-view content is to download via a free catch-up service (31%) or via DVD/Blu-ray (31%), closely followed by a free streamed catch-up service. Only 10% said they binge- watched via a paid-for download service, and only 8% said they did so via a paid-for streamed service.
• Binge-viewing most often takes place on 'standard TV' (37%) over computers, smartphones, and tablets. Traditional connected devices remain the second-most used, with the laptop (32%) and the desktop (27%) appearing high on the list. Just 11% said that they binge-view on a tablet device.
• Films and movies tend to be the preferred binge-viewing content for 51% of respondents, followed by entertainment programs (38%).
• 16% of respondents said they would pay for a service that allowed them to immediately download/stream recently completed TV series, and 21% would be happy to pay a little more for it if it came as part of a bundle deal. 21% also said they would choose a provider who offered this type of service.
• Interestingly, women are more likely to binge-watch than men. 35% of women say they binge-view at least once a week, compared to 32% of men.
• Younger age groups are more likely to binge-view with 44% of 25-34 year olds  and 41% of 16-24 year-olds saying they do it at least once a week.

TRADITIONAL TV ADVERTISEMENTS ARE A TURN-OFF; CONSUMERS SHIFT ATTENTION TO PROGRAM-RELATED PURCHASES
The study suggests that traditional TV and mobile advertising is reaching a saturation point, while consumers appear to embrace new forms of personalized and program-related merchandising.

• 84% of people admitted to wanting to fast-forward ads they watch; 65% of respondents said they want to fast-forward more than half the time they watch TV.
• Consumers are consciously finding ways around advertising – it's a reason for why the majority record or download programs. 60% of those surveyed say they record content to be able to fast-forward through advertising.
• 41% of consumers feel that mobile advertising is intrusive.
• 49% of consumers never click through or follow up on TV advertisement on their connected devices.
• Consumers are increasingly using more than one device to engage in the TV program they are watching. Of those who have done so, 36% used a second device to access live information about the program; 32% engaged in a text conversation about the program; and 21% engaged in a voice conversation using a second device.
• Interestingly, 30% of consumers using secondary devices have done so to purchase products featured in the programs they watch, while 20% played an interactive game or app related to the program.

CONSUMERS LOVE ENTERTAINMENT IN THE LIVING ROOM BUT ARE STILL "TUNED-IN" IN THE BEDROOM
Traditional broadcast TV remains a staple of the home entertainment ecosystem, and the living room continues to be the preferred location for entertainment viewing in the home, but consumers are extending this paradigm onto more devices in more rooms. Watching TV is often the secondary action to provide background entertainment, as mobile smart devices have become much more of a distraction – often taking consumers away from the content they're watching on their main screen. This makes traditional TV something that is easy to put down as well as pick up. Internet TV is also on the rise in the living room and remains stable in the bedroom.

• The living room is still central to consuming entertainment, with the majority of all types of content being viewed in that room. Thanks to new devices, respondents are branching out from the living room - 41% of tablet owners watch content on their tablet in the bedroom, and 22% in the kitchen.
• 66% of respondents said they watch broadcast TV in the living room, while 61% said they watch subscription paid TV.
• Tablet and smartphone use for watching media and content is increasing in the rooms not traditionally associated with this – the dining room, the kitchen and the bathroom.
• Around half of smartphone owners watch TV on their smartphone for at least a few minutes a week.
• This is also the case for around six out of ten tablet owners.
• 65% are interested in a service that allows them to watch any TV program from any device in any location.
• Broadcast TV is here to stay - 96% of global respondents watch at least one hour of broadcast TV each week.
• 52% said that they would be interested in pausing and restarting content in another room.
• 56% percent of respondents have used a device to do a task while watching TV.
• The device most likely to distract consumers in 2014 is the laptop, with 29% of people saying they used one to have a text conversation, buy a song, play a game or access data about the program. Smartphones, surprisingly, are the preferred device for distraction among just 18% of the population.
• 37% of respondents said that they were browsing the Internet in a manner unrelated to the content on TV using a second device; 37% also said they were texting/messaging/emailing friends or family; 33% said they were browsing social media; 29% said they were online shopping; 29% said playing a game.

HOUSEHOLDS ARGUE NOT OVER WHAT TO WATCH, BUT WHAT TO DELETE
Recording of content is causing frustration in the household. With so much content to watch, and yet a finite amount of time in the day, households argue over what gets consigned to trash.  

• 62% of respondents record content each week. However, of that recorded content, over a quarter is never actually watched (28%).
• 52% said they recorded content to skip the parts of the program they didn't like.
• 40% of those who delete programs before they get around to watching them say the reason they delete programs is because they are no longer interested; 28% saw the content elsewhere; 23% had to delete to make way for other programs; and 10% plan to get it on demand.
• 74% of respondents who had to delete a program from their DVR before watching it said that having to delete programs to make space has caused frustration in the home.
• Consumers quickly run out of space when it comes to recording TV programs. 62% have had to delete or move old TV programs and films to make space for new content. 64% said they would like to use a cloud service to store their entertainment.
• 47% of respondents say they'd like to be able to record two or more programs at the same time. Nearly a third of people (30%) would be prepared to pay for that service.
• 29% of respondents said that they would swap to a different service provider or complete the sign up to a provider if they could store their content remotely. In addition, 33% said they would be prepared to pay for this service.
• 62% of those interested in such a service would willingly be shown a few ads in exchange for a free storage solution to save their content.

About The ARRIS Consumer Entertainment Index
ARRIS's Consumer Entertainment Index is a research project looking into the media consumption habits of 10,500 consumers across 19 markets: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, France, Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, Sweden, Russia, Spain, Singapore, South Korea, Turkey, UK, and USA. The research was conducted on behalf of ARRIS by independent agency, Vanson Bourne.

This research is focused on media content consumption on multiple devices. The aim of the study was to develop both a global and regional understanding of what content was coming into homes and how it was being consumed, how viewing habits were evolving, and trends service providers should seek to support both now and in the future.

To access the report, go to: www.arrisi.com/arriscei

About ARRIS
ARRIS is a global innovator in IP, video and broadband technology. We have continually worked with our customers to transform the experience of entertainment and communications for millions of people across the world. The people of ARRIS are dedicated to the success of our customers, bringing a passion for invention that has fueled our 60-year history: We created digital TV, delivered the first wireless broadband gateway and are pioneering the standards and pathways for tomorrow's personalized, Ultra HD, multiscreen, and cloud services. We are dedicated to meeting today's challenges and preparing for the tasks the future holds. Collaborating with our customers, ARRIS will continue to solve the most pressing challenges of 21st century communications. Together, we are inventing the future. For more information: www.arrisi.com

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The ARRIS Consumer Entertainment Index (CEI) replaces the former Motorola Media Engagement Barometer (MEB). 

ARRIS and the ARRIS Logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of ARRIS Enterprises, Inc.  All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.  © ARRIS Enterprises, Inc. 2014.  All rights reserved.

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