broadcast media trends 2013 a research paper by atomik research
Contents - Abstract - Executive Summary and Highlights - Materials and Methods - About Atomik Research - Results
• The Daily News Fix
TV and radio most trusted media platforms for news
TV and radio still turned to for breaking news
• Confronting Paywalls
Monetising the internet
Reverting to the media stalwarts
• Media trends on the radio waves
BBC stations rule the media waves
Listeners increasingly fickle when it comes to presenters
• Keeping up-to-date with the latest music Radio number one for new music • multimedia support for online articles
Video support for online articles
• Websites first choice for video and competitions
Websites first choice for informative videos
Websites control competitions
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Conclusion
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Abstract Traditional media platforms still dominate the media landscape despite a proliferation of new channels emerging, overwhelmingly regarded as the ‘go to’ place for breaking news and new music. Rather than replacing traditional outlets, new platforms have opened up fresh avenues to interact with media, which work in juxtaposition with the old. Research by RAJAR recently revealed 91% of the population tune in to radio at least once a week, up by approximately 1.5 million adults on the same quarter of the previous year (Q2, 2012). Television remains similarly dominant, with 94.4% of the population turning on the box at least once a week, according to BARB statistics. But despite record numbers being recorded on the radio waves and on TV, various other online broadcast channels are growing increasingly popular. More than one billion unique users visit YouTube each month and Spotify has recently added six million people to its 24 million-strong current active user base. On Facebook, 110 million songs, albums, and radio stations have been played 40 billion times via apps integrated with the social media giant. Atomik Research’s white paper report into the state of the broadcast media landscape looks to ascertain how new and old media is working together. By canvassing the opinion of more than 1,002 people and segmenting the results by age, gender and location, we have built a report that gives in-depth insight into the broadcast media landscape, as well as giving indications as to where the industry may be going in the future.
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Executive Summary& Highlights The broadcast media industry has become a mixed bag of channels which are specialised and largely work in harmony, with media consumers associating certain output with specified platforms, rather than using one in a holistic manner. Monetising the internet has caused consumers to drift back toward traditional media, which is still a largely favoured media channel among the British public, despite a plethora of new media channels offering competition. TV and radio are still the most trusted media platforms for breaking news and new music, although there’s notable gaps emerging in terms of age and location. Those between 18 and 24 are the least likely to be put off by online paywalls and use social media, YouTube and other online streaming sites to perform more tasks than any other age demographic. Those in London seem to be far more tech savvy than other region, particularly compared to the East and East Anglia, which is the home to far more traditional media lovers than anywhere else in the country. The 2013 Broadcast Media Trends report has canvassed 1,002 people across Great Britain to decipher how people are using media and in what ways new media types are disrupting the market. The quantitative research shows that even though online platforms and social media channels are being widely used by audiences across the country, their introduction has simply added another channel into the media mix, rather than replacing the existing platforms.
Edward Cyster, Managing Director of 4mediarelations: “It has become increasingly important in broadcast PR to cover all the bases, which has been confirmed by this report into the state of broadcast media in 2013. At 4mediarelations we have long appreciated the importance of new media channels and adapted our offering in response, adding web chats, live streaming and video news releases (VNR) to our range of traditional broadcast outlets.�
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materials & methods The research is based on the responses of 1,002 people quizzed in the first quarter of 2013. The response rate is slightly tipped towards females, with a 54/46 split. We canvassed the opinions of several different age demographics, with the lion’s share of responses coming from over 55s, who accounted for 47% of the research group. Young adults (18 to 24-year-olds) made up 2% of the panel, with 25 to 34-year-olds making up 9%, 35 to 44-year-olds accounting for 18% and 45 to 54-year-olds making up the rest of the panel. We also tracked the geographical spread of our respondents, finding we got a fairly even spread across the country. The North West and South East made up the largest proportion, accounting for more than a quarter of respondents accumulatively. London was accountable for almost 10% of respondents, East Anglia and Scotland making up 9% each, and the South West, Yorkshire and the West Midlands also notched up around 8% of respondents. The North East, Northern Ireland and Wales made up the rest of the panel.
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about atomik research Atomik Research is a creative market research agency which delivers insightful qualitative and quantitative research results that will get people talking. Our strong PR and marketing background enables us to script the most resourceful questions which get the best results and provide vital news links for strong editorial features. We know what creative angles work for the media and understand what makes journalists tick. Every research project we work on is given a fresh pair of eyes and a dedicated Atomik Research Project Management Team to work with you every step of the way ensuring the strongest possible research results are delivered which will have an impact on the news agenda, forming public opinion and shaping headlines.
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The Daily News Fix TV and radio most trusted media platforms for news Television programmes and radio are still considered the most trustworthy platforms for news. Two-thirds of respondents said TV is the most trustworthy media outlet for accurate news updates, with almost 15% (14.37%) citing the radio. These channels trump the proliferation of new media available, with less than 13% (12.77%) of respondents saying they would use free websites for their news fix and under 5% saying they would use free newspapers (3%) or social media (3%). TV and radio still turned to for breaking news TV and radio remain the most popular media platforms when it comes to breaking news, although their dominance is slowly being eroded by new and emerging outlets. Almost 30% (29%) of respondents said they would expect to hear breaking news on the television as opposed to 23% who turned to the radio. However, new media platforms are quickly catching up to the traditional channels thanks to their ability to transmit breaking news more rapidly. More than one-fifth (20%) of respondents said they would expect to see breaking news on websites first and 15% cited social media. Those in East Anglia are most likely to trust conventional media platforms, with 86.5% relying on either TV or radio for news. Those between 18 and 24 are most trusting of social media for breaking news, with only 1.6% of those between 45 and 54 trusting the platform compared to 83.6% in this age group relying on TV or radio.
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Confronting Paywalls Monetising the internet An increasing amount of media outlets have made moves to monetise their online ventures by installing paywalls on their sites. However, the lure of free news and features elsewhere may be putting a dent into profit made from these arms, with twothirds of respondents saying they would turn to traditional media for news and feature consumption. Those least likely to turn to traditional media are 18 to 24-year-olds, of which 42% said the introduction of a paywall wouldn’t put them off subscribing to online channels. 35 to 44-year-olds (40%) also showed an indifference to subscription services, with those living in the South West (47%) and North West (38%) the least likely to be dissuaded from using online channels if payment was required.
Reverting to the media stalwarts Of those who would turn to traditional media to avoid online paywalls, television was an overwhelmingly popular form of media. Almost two-thirds (62%) of respondents said TV would be their preferred media choice, with 19% citing radio and 14% saying national or regional papers. Those in East Anglia (30%) would most likely turn to the radio if online sites started to introduce paywalls, with an overwhelming majority (74%) of those in West Midlands turning to the TV, along with 70% in Yorkshire and Humber and the same number in Scotland.
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Media trends on the radio waves BBC stations rule the media waves National and regional BBC stations hold an overwhelming dominance on the radio waves, accounting for more than two-thirds of the total vote. Larger BBC stations, such as Radio 1,2,3,4,6 and the Asian Network, were listened to by 42% of respondents, with local stations attracting 25% of the votes. Larger commercial stations, such as Absolute, Capital or KISS, are listened to by 20%, and just over 15% of respondents said they didn’t listen to the radio at all. Those in Wales (58%) and the South West (55%) tune into the larger BBC stations the most, with respondents in the North East (30%) and London (29%) most likely to tune into a larger commercial station. In terms of age group, 45 to 54-year-olds are the most likely (29%) to listen to a local BBC radio station, closely followed by over 55s (26%).
Listeners increasingly fickle when it comes to presenters Presenter loyalty is becoming increasingly fickle, even on the larger stations and on BBC radio waves. Just over 40% (42.61%) said they would tune in more than twice a week to listen to the same show, leaving well over half of respondents admitting to the opposite. Females are most likely to be the most fickle when it comes to radio presenters, with 58% saying they don’t have any presenter loyalty. Those aged between 18 and 24 are the least loyal age group, with 74% having no allegiance to a presenter. 45 to 54-year-olds are the most loyal at 46%.
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Keeping up-to-date with the latest music
Radio number one for new music Despite the plethora of new music media channels, radio remains overwhelmingly popular when it comes to listening to new releases. Just under two-thirds (63%) choose to tune into the radio for the latest tunes, far more than online streaming sites or social channels, which garnered just 9% and 5% respectively. YouTube accounted for 22% of the vote, highlighting that it is becoming an increasingly dominant media channel, with TV channels taking just under that amount, garnering 19% of the vote. Only 26% of 18 to 24-year-olds would turn to radio for new music, compared to more than 60% of respondents in every other category. Those in London are the most likely to use YouTube or a similar online channel for new music, with more than a third (37%) opting for this platform. 14% of Londoners also rank Spotify and other streaming sites as their go-to place for new music.
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multimedia support for online articles
Video support for online articles There’s a big focus from online news providers to add multimedia content to online articles, but our survey results show that users feel rather indifferent to it being there, at least as things stand. Seven in ten respondents said they would be neither more or less interested in reading online articles if they include video content, with only 13% saying video content would make the article more appealing and 16% saying it would make it less appealing. Those in London (20%) and the North East (20%) say they would be more likely to read online articles if they include video content, with respondents from Northern Ireland (31%) and East Anglia (21%) less likely to read the content.
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Websites first choice for video and competitions Websites first choice for informative videos When looking for online informative videos, more than half of people would go to a website to find them, such as a news website or online gossip mag. This suggests informative videos work better as a standalone media, rather than supporting online articles. YouTube was also a popular medium for searching out informative multimedia content online, with 42% of respondents saying this is the channel they would use. Social media and word of mouth are less utilised when looking for this type of content.
However, websites were unanimously favoured across all age groups as the most preferred method. Regionally, websites also dominated, with only respondents in East Anglia, North East, North West and Yorkshire and the Humber registering less than 60% of the vote.
Those in the East Midlands are most likely to choose online news websites for informative videos, with 62% choosing this channel compared to only 38% in Yorkshire and the Humber and 49% in the North West. 18 to 24-year-olds use YouTube above all other channels to find informative videos, with 68% choosing the video-sharing website compared to only 39% of 45 to 54-year-olds, who prefer online news websites.
Websites control competitions Competitions continue to be a big part of the media offering, but they’re becoming increasingly web-focussed. Newspapers, TV and Radio are no longer the first place people would look for competitions, garnering only 24%, 13% and 5% of the vote respectively. Websites, on the other hand, accounted for almost two-thirds of the vote (62%), with social media (12%) also popular. Those aged between 25 to 34 are the most likely to look for competitions in newspapers, with 35 to 44-year-olds most likely to look for them in magazines.
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conclusion TV and radio remain the most trusted platforms for news and the go-to place for new music. Monetising the internet through paywalls has prompted the lion’s share of respondents to revert back to traditional media platforms. The only age group that bucked this trend was 18 to 24-year-olds, 42% of which would be happy to pay to view online content. BBC stull rule the radio waves, with larger BBC stations, such as Radio 1,2,3,4,6 and the Asian Network, listened to by 42% of respondents, with local stations attracting 25% of the votes. However, listeners are fickle when it comes to presenters, which is reflected by Nick Grimshaw’s turbulent battle to keep listeners in the face of fierce competition from Chris Evans’ Radio 2 morning slot. Online is widely utilised by British media consumers, particularly in regards to informative videos and competitions. However, it is clearly evident that online media titles have a lot of work to do before they significantly challenge traditional media, with respondents largely disengaged by supportive video content and substantially put off by paywalls.
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