This is not a scoop but the figures remain very impressive: the confined French have (really) watched a lot of television in recent weeks. Not to mention platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video or even Disney +, launched in the middle of the containment period.
Médiamétrie has published a very comprehensive quantitative study to measure these historic audiences. "During the first six weeks of confinement (from March 17 to April 26, 2020), the duration of individual television viewing amounted on average to 4:41 daily, compared to 3:29 a year earlier, an increase of more than a third ”, explains in particular the study. Julien Rosanvallon, Executive Director of Médiamétrie analyzes these figures for 20 Minutes .
Has television, following the confinement, regained its audiences of yesteryear?
We are in completely new levels of television consumption. The time spent in front of the television increased until a few years ago. Since then, it has consolidated. The audiovisual experience has totally changed in the last 30 years. Watching television on today's screens has nothing to do with the 1990s, for example. There has also been an acceleration of available content, cable, satellite, ADSL, DTT ... But there, this is a historic leap in general audience.
What do you learn from these historic audiences?
The main lesson is that the link is always extremely strong between the public and television. For example, audience growth is particularly visible on young and CSP + targets, two targets that were said to be more attracted to new forms of audiovisual consumption. The French, with confinement, have had more time for them. This time, they chose to spend it in front of television programs.
Has catch-up television also benefited from the upturn?
The growth rate of replay, which was already strong, followed a curve roughly similar to that of linear television. Before the crisis, in 2019, we had around twenty programs that had exceeded the milestone of one million viewers in replay. There, in 2020, there are already more than 30.
What about platforms like Netflix, or Disney +?
The audience for new on-demand platforms has also grown, of course. But it has nothing to do with television. Internet consumption has also increased significantly, all screens. People had a choice of watching what they wanted; they chose television programs first.
Have certain programs and channels managed to fare better during the crisis?
The increase in audiences is a general observation. Television has won as a whole. Of course, for news and information channels in particular, growth is more marked. But all categories of channels and programs have progressed.
Most channels have relied on family programs, popular comedies for example. Did these choices boost the general audience?
Yes, unifying and family programs, which use a certain memory, or nostalgia, have worked particularly well. No doubt viewers were looking for some form of comfort. But the other salient point is the strong increase in audiences, history, information, and very particularly the speeches of the President of the Republic and the Prime Minister. Two speeches by Emmanuel Macron gathered more than 35 million viewers and 95% of the public. It is an unprecedented figure, an absolute historical record.
Do you know if the most popular programs have tended to bring together members of the same household in front of the television?
We will have to wait for the results of the qualitative studies, but I suspect that television has brought families together, yes. I believe that this period demonstrated that there was still a very strong attachment to the television media. When it comes to staying connected and informed, faced with a difficult experience, television is essential.
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- Mediametry
- Audience
- TV audience
- Confinement
- Media
- Covid 19
- Coronavirus
- Television