Thursday, 24 January 2013

BBC iPlayer use boosted by viewers watching on tablets and mobiles - The Guardian

A surge in watching TV shows on mobiles and tablets on the way to work fuelled a rise of more than a third in viewing on the BBC's iPlayer video-on-demand service last year, with Danny Boyle's London Olympic opening ceremony the most requested programme of 2012.

There was a 177% year-on-year increase in the use of mobiles and tablets to watch shows on the iPlayer, according to BBC figures published on Thursday. Mobile and tablets accounted for more than a quarter of the 2.32bn TV and radio programmes watched on the iPlayer last year.

In total 36.5bn minutes of BBC programmes were watched on the iPlayer in 2012. The BBC said this was a 34% increase over 2011.

The BBC said usage statistics show most people with mobiles download a show at night and watch it on their commute to work the next day.

This surge in popularity of watching programmes on the go helped to push the use of PCs to its lowest level since the iPlayer launched in 2007.

In 2012, 47% of requests for iPlayer content came from PCs, the first time it has fallen below 50%.

"Last year, the use of iPlayer shifted from PCs and early adopter devices like game consoles to screens used by all audiences," said Daniel Danker, general manager of programmes and on-demand at the BBC. "Mobile, tablet, and connected TV skyrocketed, with a particular emphasis on audiences taking iPlayer on the go."

The most popular iPlayer show of 2012 was Danny Boyle's London Olympic opening ceremony, which managed 3.3m requests to view.

Jeremy Clarkson's Top Gear also proved popular with episodes of series 18 featuring seven times in the top 20 list. The highest was the opening episode in second place with 2.8m views.

Sherlock Holmes managed third place, with 2.5m views of the first episode of series two, A Scandal in Belgravia.

 
1 Olympic Ceremonies London 2012 Opening Ceremony      3,326,903
2 Top Gear Series 18 Episode 1      2,834,190
3 Sherlock Series 2 A Scandal in Belgravia Episode 1      2,528,722
4 Top Gear Series 18 Episode 2      2,419,162
5 Doctor Who Series 7 Asylum of the Daleks Episode 1      2,243,137
6 Top Gear Series 18 Episode 4      2,201,738
7 Olympic Ceremonies London 2012 Closing Ceremony 12/08/2012      2,114,403
8 Top Gear Series 18 Episode 3      2,060,513
9 Top Gear Series 18 Episode 5      2,024,452
10 Sherlock Series 2 The Reichenbach Fall Episode 3      1,913,653
11 Top Gear Series 18 Episode 7      1,856,258
12 The Apprentice Series 8 Blank Canvas Episode 1      1,853,807
13 Doctor Who Series 7 Dinosaurs on a Spaceship Episode 2      1,819,200
14 Citizen Khan Episode 1      1,723,773
15 Top Gear Series 18 Episode 6      1,722,643
16 Sherlock Series 2 The Hounds of Baskerville Episode 2      1,689,118
17 The Voice UK Blind Auditions 1 Episode 1      1,677,994
18 Doctor Who Series 7 The Angels Take Manhattan Episode 5      1,638,232
19 Top Gear India Special      1,493,544
20 The Apprentice Series 8 Household Gadget Episode 2      1,490,817
       

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