TV STILL DOMINATES USERS VIEWING TIME

American consumers spend more time with television than all other ad-supported media platforms, according to a new GfK Research study, which also says that consumers overwhelmingly trust local broadcast TV news over any other source.

The 2020 Media Comparisons Study, carried out in collaboration with TVB, looked at multi-media usage and effectiveness and investigated how individuals consume ad-supported media – both traditional and digital. It explored reach, time spent, the role each medium plays in motivating consumers to learn more about a product or service, and what ultimately affects their purchase decisions.

GfK says that “the results confirm television’s advantages as an advertising medium across various demographics and product categories”. Local broadcast TV, both on-air and digital, maintained its position as the top medium for consumers when compared to other media.

Adults over 18 spent 5 hours and 17 minutes with television daily. The next closest medium was social media at 1 hour and 6 minutes, followed by radio (1:01) and email (1:00). TV also delivered the highest reach with 80% of adults daily, and broadcast alone delivering a 78% reach. Social media, radio, search and cable each had reach in the mid-50th percentile.

The research also showed that if respondents could choose only five TV networks, the big four broadcast networks would be their top choices. A cable network took fifth place, but had less than half the support. Three-quarters of adults regarded local broadcast TV as the most trusted news source. This compares with local TV news websites/apps (64%), radio (68%), cable TV (56%), and social media (25%).

“The clear main take is that despite competition for consumers’ attention is growing by the day, television continued to stand tall as the medium with which people choose to spend most of their available time,” said Steve Lanzano, President and CEO of TVB.