TRENDS IN CHILDREN'S TV VIEWING

trends5

Key points - 5-16 year olds:

  • Average hours watched per day is down, to 2.5, compared with 3.0 hours per day three years ago
  • TV as a shared experience is declining, with increasing diversity of channels and programmes
  • A growing number of closely targeted channels, with ever greater fragmentation
  • Traditional after-school TV slot is no longer sacrosanct – there are other claims on children’s time, with more organised activities, after school clubs, etc
  • No new mass-market TV favourites have emerged over the last couple of years
  • Internet access and use continues to intensify, reaching ever-younger children

Television

Average hours of TV watched per day – 1994 to 2005 – 5-16 year olds

 

Terrestrial Channels – 2005-6

  • 65% of 5-16 year olds watched BBC1 in the preceding week, 34% watched BBC2
  • 56% watched ITV, 44% watched Channel 4, 29% watched five
  • BBC1, BBC2, ITV all down from previous year, Channel 4 is up year on year, five is unchanged

Top Non-Terrestrial Channels – 2005-6

  • 96% of 5-16 year olds watched satellite, cable or Digital TV in the preceding week.


TV in the Morning / After School / in the Evening (2005-6)

 

5 - 10 year olds

  

11 - 16 year olds

  Regularly Occasionally   Regularly Occasionally
Before School 46 30   27 31
After school 60 30   37 35
After 9pm (weekends) 30 40   67 25

Favourite TV Programmes (2005-6)

Boys 5-10 years Girls 5-10 years Boys 11-16 years Girls 11-16 years
Scooby Doo 7% Tracy Beaker 15% Simpsons 17% Eastenders 18%
Simpsons 6% Simpsons 4% Match of the Day 5% Friends 11%
Spongebob Squarepants 6% Scooby Doo 4% Lost 4% Simpsons 6%
CBBC 4% That's So Raven 3% Friends 3% HollyOaks 5%
Power Rangers 4% Eastenders 2% Sky Sports 3% Lost 4%
Tom & Jerry 3% Spongebob Squarepants 2% Eastenders 2% Coronation Street 4%
Tracy Beaker 2% Tom & Jerry 2% Coronation Street 2% My Wife and Kids 2%
That's So Raven 2% Recess 2% My Wife and Kids 2% Will and Grace 2%
Recess 2% Lizzie McGuire 2% CSI 2% Charmed 2%
Fairly Odd Parents 2% S'Life of Zac & Cody 2% Little Britain 2% X Factor 2%
               
Any of the top ten 36% Any of the top ten 38% Any of top ten 42% Any of the top ten 56%

Internet

5 -10 year olds 11-16 year olds

  • 90% of 5-16's have a PC at home
  • More than one in three have their own PC; nearly three in ten 5-10's and half of 11-16's
  • 71% have Internet at home

% of Children who have Accessed the Internet

  • 76% of 5-16 year olds claim to have accessed the Net
  • 68% have accessed at home
  • 47% have accessed at school
  • 89% of users access more than once a week (average time spent online per day is 1.8 hours), 50% of 11-16’s use most days.
  • 49% of 7-16’s have Broadband at home