US consumers viewed 130 percent more hours of streaming content in Q2 2019 versus Q2 2018, according to Conviva. Among the findings, connected TVs led device category growth, video thrived on social media and buffering ads are causing a “crisis” in audience abandonment.
Conviva’s Q2 2019 State of the TV Streaming Industry report compiles data collected from streaming video applications using the company’s proprietary sensor technology. The video optimization company claims to analyze more than a trillion real-time transactions per day.
The report says that ad buffering is causing a TV advertising “crisis” because audiences are abandoning longer ads with lower quality. Seventy percent of audience abandonment occurs during an ad running between 10-20 seconds, compared to 48 percent that abandons during ads running 10 seconds or less. Fewer audiences abandoned the content during pre-roll ads compared to mid-roll.
Even small decreases in buffering result in much longer average content play times, the report states. During Q2 2019, a reduction in rebuffering ratio from the 0.79 percent average measured in 2018 to 0.46 percent in 2019 resulted in 12 percent more engagement.
Streaming activity declined in Boston, New York and San Francisco, the report observed, while Dallas, Atlanta and Phoenix demonstrated the most streaming consumption. The report noted that total consumption figures have been normalized based on city population size. Conviva did not speculate as to a reason for each market’s respective growth or decline.
In terms of viewing hours, connected TV usage rose 143 percent, which the report attributed to Roku specifically. The streaming service held an overall 43 percent share of all connected TV viewing and experienced a 173 percent surge in viewing hours. Roku also accounted for roughly 54 percent of all live viewing via connected TVs during the quarter.
Social media video uploads increased during Q2 2019, including 15 percent more on Facebook and YouTube. News media experienced the most growth in average total video views, at 197 percent, while entertainment led in terms of growth of views per video at 99 percent.
