Our annual exploration of the UK’s viewing habits MAY 2 020 Objective information is critical for the UK’s television and advertising industry. Each year, £7.5 billion is spent by broadcasters and advertisers on the production and distribution of programme and commercial content. BARB provides an independent, joint-industry currency that is trusted to assess the return on this investment. Dealing with audience fragmentation has been a constant aspect of BARB’s work since our formation in 1981. Fragmentation today is driven by the rise of programmes and commercials being delivered online and on-demand. We constantly develop our measurement techniques to meet the needs of the industry with high-quality data. In recent years we have developed techniques to report viewing to BVOD services on TV sets, tablets, PCs and smartphones; pre-broadcast and non-linear viewing on TV sets and dynamically-served advertising. The Viewing Report brings to life the latest insights from BARB. We hope you enjoy reading it. CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 5 MEET OUR GUEST ESSAYS CONTRIBUTORS Rhiannon Murphy 6 The power of knowledge HELLO, Rhiannon Murphy is Head Rhiannon Murphy of AV at the7stars. She illustrates how the insights resulting 8 Capturing the rise and rise of drama from new measurement services Rachel Shaw BARB is starting its fifth decade in strange editorial environment in which commercials VIEWING open up further opportunities for and testing times. I’ve written separately are seen. 10 Linking strategic and implementational planning AUDIENCES ARE clients, underlining the power of about the implications of the current Rhian Feather television as a medium. public health crisis, and won’t dwell on the There has been one constant since 1981. FRAGMENTING; implications here. Viewing audiences are fragmenting. It’s in WE DELIVER Rachel Shaw BARB UPDATES this context we deliver understanding of how UNDERSTANDING Rachel Shaw is Head of For all the short-term challenges, BARB people’s behaviour is changing. This requires OF HOW PEOPLE’S Content Portfolio for the 12 Project Dovetail status update continues to focus on three core purposes. continuous development of a currency that is BBC. She highlights the importance always on; we’re continually changing wheels BEHAVIOUR IS of drama and shows what BARB’s 13 Total television viewing: What’s included? We began life in 1981, when the BBC and on a moving car. CHANGING multiple-screen viewing data reveal ITV came together to deliver a single about audience behaviour for the measurement of what people watch, thereby Our service went through several upgrades BBC’s top dramas. NEW INSIGHT demonstrating how they operated in the during the last decade. As well as reporting public interest. BARB’s purpose of supporting post-broadcast audiences, we now know Rhian Feather 14 Measuring pre-broadcast the public service of television is as clear when people watch programmes before Rhian Feather is Connections today as it was then. Our viewing figures they’ve been broadcast. And it’s not just Planning Executive Business 16 Devices in the TV ecosystem are ingrained in broadcasters’ ongoing about the TV set; we report multiple-screen Director at OMD. She explains how conversation with Ofcom, government and programme ratings that cover viewing on the BARB and IPA TouchPoints data CENTREFOLD - the public. tablets, PCs and smartphones. I could go on. fusion helps to improve the impact of television planning in a complex THE TOP TENS OF 2019* Secondly, BARB supports the making of We expect more upgrades in this new landscape. great television programmes. Our currency decade. Two priorities are the need to report 18 Most-watched on devices helps broadcasters commission more of the campaign performance including BVOD programmes that people want to watch, and services and to deliver more insight on SVOD 20 Demography on three screens supports how they judge the success of their audiences. You can read more about what programme investments. we already know on SVOD viewing on pages THE SVOD REPORT 22-25 of this report. Our third purpose is to support the trading of television advertising. Again, this is as The good news is we’ve started the new 22 SVOD report true for BARB today as it was in 1981, while decade with more progress. We now report our currency also helps advertisers assess unduplicated multiple-screen programme UPDATED INSIGHT brand and sales outcomes. We make it reach, and have integrated IPA TouchPoints relatively straightforward for advertisers and audience classifications into our daily 26 Introduction agencies to integrate our data with brand audience reporting. This year’s guest essays tracking studies, shopper panel data, or other from Rachel, Rhian and Rhiannon explore 27 Timeshift effectiveness measures. these developments from the broadcaster and the media agency perspective. 28 Share by genre We deliver a trusted audience measurement currency to fulfil these purposes because I hope you enjoy reading about these 29 Share by broadcaster of our core principles. These principles of developments, and all our other independence, objectivity and transparency measurement services, in this year’s edition resonate with those articulated recently of The Viewing Report. 30 Training & Find out more by the World Federation of Advertisers, for whom trusted audience measurement is a priority. Our independent, people-based audience figures represent viewing by people from across the breadth of our society. Objective due diligence is needed to maintain our Justin Sampson reporting standards. And comparability Chief Executive * Please let us know if the centrefold has already isn't just about metrics: fundamental to BARB been removed and you would like another. our reporting is transparency on the 6 RHIANNON MURPHY RHIANNON MURPHY 7 Left: © Saturday Night Takeaway / THE POWER OF Deliveroo KNOWLEDGE Sadly, a shadow of doubt has been cast importance of understanding viewers’ over television’s power as a medium. In our relationships with programmes and how they view at the7stars, this is too often because watch those programmes through the various advertisers are being wrongly advised. devices available. Whether they are experienced marketers with a history of advertising successfully on As audiences start shifting to platforms where TV, or have less experience as an individual we can’t advertise, it’s vital for us as planners marketer or smaller organisation, brands to understand the relationship between have been reading headlines that suggest programme, screen and consumer. There commercials on BVOD services. Then we will with the advent of BARB’s router meters is the they should be sceptical and apprehensive has been much speculation around the level finally be able to plan, measure and evaluate ability to find out how much of what BARB about whether television can do a great of viewership that has migrated onto other viewing to commercials across linear and calls unidentified viewing is accounted for brand-building job. devices. Now that BARB is reporting multiple- BVOD services. This will unlock insights for by viewing to SVOD services. Q4 2019 saw an screen programme average audiences, we all clients who use BVOD services. This is average of 55 minutes of unidentified viewing While advertisers are feeling pressure to be can see that the level of viewing on non-TV especially so for those in highly competitive each day, more than double the amount in concerned about their television investment, devices is very small, with 99% of viewing still categories such as Iceland which has tough the first quarter of 2014. As an industry, we their intuition is that TV is aspirational for happening on a TV set. competition with other supermarkets, are acutely aware of the ever-growing, ever- their brand, effective for their business fighting for share of viewing amongst an competitive SVOD market, and more detail on and provides an opportunity to put their That’s not to say that viewing on devices audience of housepersons with children that the make-up of unidentified viewing is crucial message in front of potential customers in is unimportant. Now that BARB reports is increasingly shifting viewing from linear TV to understanding the television ecosystem in an environment that’s entertaining, exciting unduplicated programme reach across to BVOD services. its entirety. and has social currency. In the AV team PCs and tablets and TV sets, we have more at the7stars, we have seen the power of robust evidence to help us advocate for Ahead of the launch of the gold-standard But what next? The market will continue to television transform the businesses of many television advertising. For example, the solution next year, BARB is making a beta evolve, with new entrants producing more of our clients. Our recommendations are first transmission of Love Island Winter in BVOD planner available. I write this before premium, captivating content. With more always bespoke to each client and planned January 2020 delivered an additional 9% the tool is available for user testing, but we information than ever on viewing behaviour, with a channel-neutral view; but in TV, we unduplicated reach from PC/tablet viewing are excited about the opportunity to model we’ll be able to develop our planning even are advocates for the wonderful medium we on top of TV set viewing. This underlines reach across linear and BVOD services in our further, with new insights that open up more represent. It’s been getting a bad rap! the power of television and helps to campaigns. As we get to grips with these TV-based opportunities for clients. Television reassure clients that viewing is shifting and data, they will become yet another example will continue to provide a trusted, regulated But just as the ways in which people watch diversifying rather than declining, and their to clients of how we are deepening our environment offering an inherent quality television are changing, so are the ways advertising is reaching audiences in ways that understanding of viewers, and the value stamp for brands.