Have you tuned into the success of TV?

The success of television in 2010 proves yet again the inherent wisdom in Nietzsche’s over-used adage; what doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger.

Television, let’s remind ourselves, especially ‘linear television’, is that media relic from the last century. Pictures and sound emanating from a box in your living room, scheduled to someone else’s timetable and convenience.Despite dominating the UK’s media landscape since the Second World War, the general prognosis for the humble box in some quarters has been bleak. How can pre-determined programming retain the imagination and interest in a world of personalised and interactive media?

There’s nothing too ‘social’ about missing your favourite programme because the train was delayed. Equally, there’s nothing immediately ‘two-way’ about watching your favourite soap three times a week.

And yet television, even in its most traditional, unreconstructed terrestrial
sense, simple refuses to fade away.

Three years ago I wrote a comment piece about how TV and the 30 second spot continued to defy the doom-mongers and achieve increases in both volume and commercial impacts. The UK has slumped into, and dragged itself out of, a deep and uncompromising recession since then, but lo and behold, which media’s come up smelling of roses?

Last week, the commercial television guys Thinkbox announced that more hours were spent viewing live, linear TV last year than at any other time since records began.

According to figures from the Broadcasters’ Audience Research Board (BARB), in 2010 the average viewer watched 28 hours, 15 minutes of live, linear TV a week (4 hours, 2 minutes a day). This represents an increase of 2 hours, 4 minutes a week (18 minutes a day) on 2009.

It turns out almost everything held aloft by those harbingers of TVs imminent demise – new technologies, on-demand services, pay TV, the internet and
social media – have in fact helped propel this record performance.

It seems totally counter-intuitive but apparently the more you use recording devices like Sky+ and Virgin On-Demand, the more linear TV you’re likely to watch. Meanwhile, social media sites like Facebook and Twitter are helping to provide new layers of interaction and personalisation to the linear mix as well.

Just look at the Twitter activity during Channel 4’s My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding. Turns out those younger audiences, which Ofcom has tracked moving away from television since the arrival of mass internet access 10 years ago, are actually quite adept at multi-tasking.

Behind the near 20m headline figure who watched last year’s X Factor final on ITV lurks a social media success story. More than a quarter (26%) of all viewers used Twitter or Facebook to interact with the show, according to new research from Brand Driver.

Furthermore, those most likely to be discussing the show online are the elusive
younger demographic – with almost half (47%) of 18-24 year olds, and 42% of
25-34 year olds tuned in and online.

“The things that were supposed to signal the death of television have turned out to be some of its great driving forces,” notes Mindshare’s head of audio visual, Paul Rowlinson. “Social networking and the internet is absolutely fuelling live viewing, it is no longer possible for some viewers to watch programmes later the next day and not feel like they’ve missed out on an experience.”

TV advertising returns

Commercially, things are looking up too despite TV advertising falling through the floor in 2009. Anyone in any doubt just how much the industry’s fortunes have shifted over the past 18 months should ask Simon Fox.

HMV’s chief executive was the hot favourite to succeed Michael Grade at the
helm of ITV just 18 months ago. The CEO was enjoying accolades at the time for having helped transform and rejuvenate the high street retailer on the back of booming pre-tax profits, up 18% for the first half of 2009.

ITV meanwhile was on the ropes after an unforgiving 28% fall in profits during the same period, few eyebrows were raised when Fox chose to stay with the promising retailer… today fortunes of the two companies look decidedly different.

TV ad spend is expected to be tallied at around 13% for 2010, and ITV has performed better still. The strong recovery comes despite marketers reining in budgets in the last quarter, and against the backdrop of a 0.5% fall in national output.

And the growth looks set to continue. Taking average forecasts from three media buyers, TV spend for the first quarter of 2011 is pegged in the region of 7%, with monthly rises of 6%, 12% and 3% respectively for the first three months.

Early predictions suggest a strong start to the second quarter too, with TV spend tipped to jump a further 6% in April, part-fuelled by Prince William’s royal wedding extravaganza.

Television’s advertising outlook is all the more impressive when you take into account the high levels of Government (COI) spend in the first quarter of 2010. Buyers remain confident the £40m or so spent by COI during the same period last year will be more than offset by new advertisers in 2011.

Of course, the role of great content and strong scheduling should be recognised in the narrative of any TV renaissance. From reality formats and talent contests,
to soaps, global sports coverage and documentaries, there has been much to justify more than four hours of viewing per day.

Let’s not forget those seminal, and perhaps decisive, TV election debates either. All helped to increase commercial viewing and the number of TV ads viewed. Commercial impacts during 2010 were up 5.9% on 2009 to a record high. The average viewer watched 46 ads a day during compared to 43 ads in 2009.

Looking ahead, from Tuesday (1 February) the launch of Sky Atlantic will allow advertisers in the UK to sit next to HBO classics like Mad Men for the first time too.

Of course, as web-enabled TV and its many incarnations take hold, linear TV could well have just had its strongest-ever year. Thinkbox itself acknowledged such a possibility last week, but even as viewing habits change the fundamental allure of TV will remain.

As Thinkbox chief executive Tess Alps notes: “All the iPads, and 3D screens and smartphones and companion social media sites would be dreary devices indeed without the life-force and well-spring of great TV content.”