US viewers evolve along with their TV sets

In addition, noted the fourth annual Evolution of the TV Set, streaming, voice control, and non-viewing uses of TV sets are the leading ways in which sets – and viewers – are evolving.

The study was based on a survey conducted among 2,526 US consumers. Interviews were conducted in May 2022 and cover consumer ownership of, and attitudes towards, TV sets and TV-related technologies.

Overall, the study observed that the speed with which consumers are turning to streaming using smart TVs “continued to impress.” Just over three-fifths (62%) of TV homes reported streaming using a smart TV, compared with less than half (47%) two years ago. This rapid increase said the analyst was being driven by increases in both smart TV homes and in the share of those homes using smart TVs to stream.

Smart TVs are used for more than viewing TV programmes or movies. In smart TV homes, nearly three-quarters (73%) said they use a set for something else – up from 63% in 2020. The most popular non-TV activities on smart TVs were streaming music, mirroring or casting another screen to the set, checking news or weather apps, or using an on-set browser.

Just over half (51%) of respondents’ most-used sets in US homes had a remote control with voice command capability – up notably since 2020 (38%). In homes with a smart TV, a third linked a smart TV to a smart speaker like Amazon’s Echo or Google’s Nest, enabling voice control – up a third from 2020 (25%).

“Streaming on smart TV sets has grabbed the spotlight, but don’t forget other ways TVs have evolved,” commented David Tice, senior consultant to Hub and co-author of the Evolution of the TV Set studyEvolution of the TV Set study. “With the TV itself becoming an advertising platform, changes in user behaviours from set evolution can impact marketing opportunities, exposure, and effectiveness.” Rapid TV News