Thought Piece - The On Demand Market

The multichannel TV homes universe has grown from 29% at the end of 2000 (Ipsos MediaCT's Technology Tracker), to over 88% of homes (Ofcom Q3 2008). This has been largely driven by Freeview's DTT offering and the looming digital switchover. Along with greater choice and interactive features, one of the key benefits has been the digital television recorder (DVR), a piece of technology that places the viewer in control and has arguably revolutionised TV viewing for the c.5.7 million households that own one (Ofcom Q3 2008).

Our research tells us that, rather than using DVR technology primarily to avoid ads, viewers are using it to give them greater choice and more control over viewing. It seems that the DVR has been a huge step towards viewer empowerment - but it has not killed off the traditional TV schedule. 88% of DVR users 'always' or 'almost always' check what is on live TV before watching a recorded programme (on DVR).