Viewers have more choice than ever but this isn’t necessarily a good thing when they’re wading through a colossal content library. To succeed in today’s market, intelligent content discovery and personalisation is a must, says Tim Bleasdale, creative director, Ostmodern.In October 2017, Ericsson released the findings of its latest ConsumerLab Media Report, part of which pointed to the continuing problem of content discovery on TV and video platforms. Viewers are now so overwhelmed that they spend an average of 51 minutes searching for programmes to watch. In 2016, this was 45 minutes. Over 30% of a group described by Ericsson as screen shifters – viewers who use any screen, anywhere, for all kinds of TV and video content – say that for video on demand (VOD) they cannot find anything to watch each day. A similar figure is found for so-called mobility centrics, who mostly use mobile platforms for watching video. These two groups are assessed by Ericsson to be the fastest growing viewers so are crucial to the future of video.As these findings demonstrate, although audiences now have access to a wealth of content, a large content catalogue alone is not enough to keep them interested. Ericsson notes that the current fragmented market has led to a more fragmented user experience, suggesting that how content is offered to viewers varies significantly in form and quality. To reach and engage an audience, it is vital that broadcasters ensure that they carefully contextualise their programmes and present these well.Read more and download this month's free issue >>

Overwhelming content: why broadcasters must adapt accordingly

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