Study: HKers spend more time watching videos on digital platforms and social in Q3

After a decline in previous quarters, the total video content viewership in Hong Kong has increased in Q3 2024, driven by growth in digital platforms and social media, a study finds. 

Omnicom Media Group (OMG) conducted a survey titled “Hong Kong Video Content Viewing Landscape”, involving 800 Hong Kong residents aged between 18 and 59 who watched any video content on any free TV, pay TV or digital platforms in the past seven days.

The study showed a growing trend in total viewing time, with Hongkongers spending an average of 81.8 hours watching videos, a rise of 5.9 hours compared to earlier in the year. This includes a 3.7-hour increase on digital platforms and an additional 2.2 hours on social media.

The growth in viewing time was particularly notable among individuals aged between 45 and 49, whose weekly video consumption surged by 14.5 hours to reach 83.8 hours in total. This age group has also diversified their video preferences to include short video platforms such as Douyin, video streaming services such as iQiYi, and over-the-top (OTT) platforms such as Netflix and Disney+.

Among all the platforms, YouTube remained the most popular platform with 77% of participants using it, followed by TVB, Facebook, Instagram, Netflix, Douyin, ViuTV, Disney+, XiaoHongShu and HOY. Netflix and Disney+ also saw significant increases in viewership, up by 11% and 8% respectively.

Additionally, YouTube’s viewership has primarily risen to 65% among audiences aged between 45 and 59, while the increase in viewership of Netflix and Disney+ is strong among all age segments, with younger viewers aged between 18 and 34 showing strong interest.

The study also revealed that seven out of the 10 audiences have now subscribed to at least one OTT platform, whereas the subscription rate is the highest among Netflix and Disney+.

Different ages of audiences have different considerations for OTT subscription, audiences aged bewteen 18 and 34 prioritise watching foreign dramas and movies with convenience and flexibility, and audiences aged between 35 and 44 prefer to watch productions exclusive to OTT platforms, while viewers aged between 45 and 59 are more concerned with viewing experience.

Nicole Cheng, insights director of OMG Hong Kong, said: “To effectively target the mature audience, marketers should consider a broader range of digital platforms rather than focusing on just a few.”

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