Goodbye remote control? Tablet video viewing on the rise

Here’s another factoid for businesses trying to figure out how to optimize their Web sites or Internet marketing for the growing number of people interacting with same from tablet computers: Close to one-quarter of all U.S. tablet owners are now watching video on them.

The study by digital technology trends watcher comScore found that more than half of tablet users watched video or television content on their device in April 2012, compared with 20 percent of those using smartphones. Differences in wireless connectivity and screen size are the two obvious reasons. The data also suggests that approximately one in 10 tablet owners views video at least once daily.

The source for the research is the comScore TabLens and comScore MobileLens studies, which track mobile device usage. It reflects activity for the three-month period ended April 2012.

“It is not surprising that once consumers get their hands on their first tablet, they are using them for any number of media habits including TV viewing,” said Mark Donovan, senior vice president of mobile for comScore, in a statement.

Here are some other demographic highlights from comScore:

• The age composition of audiences using tablets skews older than using smartphones; they are 28 percent more likely to be in the 65 years and older segment and 27 percent less likely to be age 18 to 24.
• Tablet users tend to be from upper-income household; nearly 3 in 5 have household incomes of $75,000 or more. That compares with 1 in 2 smartphone users.
• Females make up a slightly larger portion of the tablet audience than they do with smartphones.
• Of those watching video, almost 27 percent paid to watch the content.

That last statistic is particularly intriguing, because it suggests that tablet users could be an important source of revenue for content providers.

Advertising professional must also be counting the opportunities to develop interactive videos that allow viewers to take immediate action on their impulse. Imagine developing a location-trigged video loop that triggers when someone walks into a physical store or restaurant. When you consider that the tablet platform is becoming a more formidable force in retail sales, it isn’t such a wild idea.

U.S. consumers have grown used to being barraged with advertisements in the movie theater, even before the previews start. It stands to reason that tablet-optimized video advertisements are probably next.

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• Retail orders via tablet computers grow appreciably