Hyperconnected consumers push OTT ahead

Hyperconnected consumers push OTT ahead
Michelle Clancy
| 11 August 2018

Rising internet penetration, denser urban locations, faster paced lifestyles and challenging working hours are adding more and more layers of complexity to consumers’ lives.

ott info 11 august 2018According to the World Health Organisation, workplace stress is the health epidemic of the 21st century, and multiple agencies have tracked the steady rise of anxiety related illnesses around the world. Consumers are feeling more stretched than ever before, and are increasingly striving for convenient solutions which help to simplify their busy lives—including when it comes to the video space.

“Around the globe, consumers need and look for convenience in all forms—whether simplicity, time saving or suitability,” said Nielsen, in its Quest for Convenience report. “When it comes to the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) space, convenience is not only about store formats, products or packaging. It means more than the latest technologies or new engagement strategies. Rather, it is about every encounter, interaction and action that can help fulfil consumers’ growing demand for efficiency.”

This includes eliminating mundane shopping actions with programmatic functions, automated lists and subscriptions that utilise artificial intelligence, augmented reality and virtual reality as well as other technologies. Thus, connected devices that make accessing OTT intuitive and content discovery easy is the name of the game in video.

Ocean Media’s Power of Connected Devices infographic shows that OTT is in the midst of a breathtaking transition for viewers, programmers and advertisers. The US now counts 8.8 connected devices per household – with 60 million devices overall deployed. This has given consumers anywhere, anytime access to content – and is one of the reasons that one in three households has cut the cord.

As a result, streaming viewership has increased 30% year-over-year, while linear viewership decreased 6%. Also, Ocean found that four in ten ‘light’ TV viewers are heavy OTT consumers.

This translates to good news for advertising firms: Ad completion rates for video per break stand at 95% – against an average video ad completion of 81% for the first quarter. Plus, today’s connected population skews younger and wealthier – an attractive proposition for brands.