Live TV dominates kids TV viewing

New research suggests that almost 90% of UK kids TV viewing is of live programming.

The Telescope 2014 report was conducted by TV Licensing, the body that oversees and enforces payment of the UK TV licence fee.

The scope of the report is limited to the UK. Given the penetration of connected devices in the country, proliferation of on-demand services and fact three-quarters of TV homes have a DVR, some market watchers expressed surprise that linear viewing dominated kids viewing to such an extent.

The report authors described the proportion of live viewing as “astonishing”, adding: “Children still rush home from school to make sure they catch their favourite television programmes as they are televised, despite a proliferation of different ways to watch TV and other digital gadgets to keep them entertained.”

TV Licensing said that kids spend an average of two hours 23 minutes of TV, which compares to an average of three hours 55 minutes among adults.

Half of kids between five and 15 use a connected device to watch TV shows while nearly all still watch via a living room set. Tablet use increased while the proportion of kids who had a TV in their bedroom fell last year from 59% to 52% among five to 15 year-olds.

Accordingly, eight of the top ten children’s programmes were shown on school days between 4.30pm and 6.30pm.