OzTAM adds co-viewing to BVOD reporting

OzTAM introduces co-viewing to VPM reporting service

OzTAM today introduces connected TV (CTV) co-viewing* data to its Video Player Measurement (VPM) Report.

This enhancement evolves the VPM service from a 1:1 people-to-device measure for broadcaster video on demand (BVOD) to reflect that people often watch BVOD content together on a CTV.

Co-viewing expands on the demographic profiles that OzTAM introduced to the VPM service in early 2019 and is an important component of VOZ, Australia’s forthcoming all-screen, cross- platform planning and reporting database.

CTV viewing accounts for approximately 50 per cent of BVOD consumption, and up to 95 per cent of that occurs with one, two or three people watching.

Accordingly, the introduction of co-viewing data reveals an additional 20-25 per cent of BVOD viewing that was not previously reported (see ‘Fast Facts’, below).

OzTAM CEO Doug Peiffer said: “We know from our technology, the robust OzTAM panel and our demographic modelling that many people watch TV together on the biggest and best screen in the home.

“Increasingly, that’s a connected TV, as 48 per cent of Australian households now have at least one.

“VPM co-viewing enables us to report that shared BVOD consumption, taking us beyond a 1:1 people-to-device ratio to now model the size of overall BVOD viewership, and uncovering 20-25 per cent of the BVOD audience that until now was not reported.”

With co-viewing, a new people-based ‘BVOD Audience’ figure replaces the device-based ‘VPM Rating’ in the BVOD top program reports posted to OzTAM’s website.

Similarly, the ‘stream starts’ (device) metric has been replaced with ‘BVOD Reach’ (people count).

OzTAM’s VPM co-viewing and demographic models have been developed by Milton Data.

Mr Peiffer added co-viewing is a key input to Australia’s forthcoming Total TV database, Virtual Australia (‘VOZ’).

“Co-viewing provides a valuable new dimension to the BVOD audience, expanding on the VPM demographic profiles OzTAM introduced early last year and illustrating the overall size and reach of broadcast viewing across all devices that VOZ reveals,” Mr Peiffer said.

Currently in the final stages of preparation for launch, Virtual Australia (or, ‘VOZ’) is the foundation of Australia’s new Total TV reporting standard, bringing together broadcast viewing on TV sets (OzTAM and Regional TAM TV ratings) and connected devices (OzTAM’s VPM Report) to provide all-screen, cross-platform planning and reporting for Australia’s television industry.

Fast facts on co-viewing

• *Co-viewing is defined as up to two additional viewers simultaneously watching BVOD on a connected TV (CTV) alongside the primary viewer.
• Co-viewing captures approximately 20-25% more BVOD minutes that until now were not measured and reported.
  • For example, if the total number of BVOD minutes played across all individual devices in a 1-hour period is 1 million, co-viewing data shows that the people watching that content collectively consumed 1.2-1.25 million minutes.
• Approximately 50% of all BVOD viewing takes place on CTVs.
• Approximately 95% of viewing minutes on CTVs occur with 1, 2 or 3 people watching.
• Device primary users/owners comprise about 80-85% of all BVOD viewers for both total people and 25-54s.
  • Although co-viewing on other devices (e.g. smartphones, tablets) occurs, such co- viewing is a small proportion of overall BVOD consumed and difficult to measure reliably.
• BVOD viewing accounts for approximately 4% of broadcaster TV content consumed (linear TV + BVOD minutes viewed).
  • However, many programs attract a sizable portion of their overall audiences via BVOD, similar to the way in which certain shows substantially build on their Overnight linear TV ratings through time-shifted viewing.
• OzTAM’s VPM reporting service typically collects, on average, around 150 million minutes of participating broadcasters’ BVOD content a day.
  • Approximately 30% is BVOD live and 70% BVOD video on demand (VOD).
• Over the same 24-hour period, Australians typically watch around 3.5 to 4 billion minutes of broadcast TV content through their television sets.

Source: OzTAM VPM, BVOD Live + VOD, January–August, 2020. Connected TV sets penetration based on combined OzTAM Metro and Regional TAM quarterly Establishment Survey, January–June, 2020.

About OzTAM’s VPM reporting service

OzTAM’s VPM reporting service captures minute-by-minute, census-level data on participating broadcasters’ TV content (BVOD live and BVOD VOD) played on devices such as connected TVs, desktops/laptops, tablets, smartphones and gaming consoles. Since launching in early 2016 those broadcasters are ABC, Seven Network, Nine Network, Network 10, SBS and Foxtel.