Long-form online video viewing doubles
DIGITAL: Hulu popularity reflects more connectivity, report says
By Danny King -- Video Business, 11/16/2009
NOV. 16 | DIGITAL: The number of Americans with high-speed Internet access who regularly watch television shows or movies via the Web has doubled in the past year as content sites including Hulu.com and Netflix and more electronics-component manufacturers ease the effort of long-form online video viewing, according to one report released last week.
More than 20 million U.S. households with broadband access regularly watch movies online, while more than 25 million households watch TV shows, Parks Associates said last week. Almost two out of five broadband-enabled households regularly watch TV through the Web, according to the research firm.
The growth reflects both the increased popularity of long-form video sites such as Hulu.com and the broader number of set-top boxes, Blu-ray Disc players and HDTVs that can be set up to access Web videos.
“Consumer interest in time-shifting content through online portals has increased significantly,” Jayant Dasari, research analyst at Parks Associates, said in a statement. “Enabling access to content anytime through any broadband-enabled device will be a significant challenge for the service providers. However, broadband video opens new revenue channels and opportunities to upgrade subscribers into higher tiers of services.”
Hulu.com, the long-form video site launched last year by News Corp. and NBC Universal, gained share of the U.S. online video market in September, the most recent month tracked, leapfrogging Microsoft and Viacom Digital in online-video popularity in the process, ComScore said earlier this month. Overall, Americans watched 26 billion online videos in September, up 2.4% from August, ComScore said.
Meanwhile, Netflix last month said that 42% of its 11.1 million subscribers streamed at least one of its digital titles, up from 22% a year earlier. Amazon.com and Blockbuster also are among content distributors broadening both their array of digital titles and the number of components that can make them viewable on televisions.
