Brightcove Inc has published its Q1 2020 Brightcove Global Video Index which analyses hundreds of millions of recent data points from Brightcove’s customers globally to provide insights into how viewers are watching video content. The Q1 data shows that as the COVID-19 pandemic quickly evolved at a global scale, there was an increase in consumers turning to video streaming sources to stay up-to-date on global, national, and local news.
Data trends indicate there had already been a steady increase in streaming news around the world, however, the Q1 2020 Brightcove Global Video Index shows that COVID-19 drew more viewer interest with news video views increasing by 47% year-over-year and time spent watching news growing by 32%. Globally, and in most regions, March saw the highest engagement among viewers (42%), with the last two weeks of March seeing more views and time spent with news than the first two weeks of the month (57%). Comparably, January accounted for 28% of the quarter’s total news views with February accounting for 30%, showing news consumption rose on a monthly basis.
Other notable stats from the Q1 2020 Brightcove Global Video Index that are specific to the ANZ region include:
- Australia already had big increases in news streaming during Q4 as wildfires roared across the country. Consumption of news video increased significantly in March, with 57% of all views happening in the third month of the quarter.
- News viewing saw a 57% year on year increase in Q1, with smartphones seeing the biggest increase (77%). Computers (54%) and connected TVs (52%) also saw strong growth, with tablets adding just 1% year on year.
- Connected TVs saw a big gain in terms of time watched (+65%), followed by desktop computers (+53%).
- Despite smartphones seeing a big gain in overall video views, the device actually saw time watched fall 16% in the quarter compared to a year ago. More than half of all time watched (57%) was on computers.
“Streaming video news has become a go-to for people who are looking to find the latest information and discoveries on topics like the COVID-19 pandemic. Not only does streaming allow them to find the information quickly, but they can do it on their preferred viewing devices and platforms,” said Jim O’Neill, Principal Analyst and Author of Brightcove’s Global Video Index. “With streaming, time and space restraints don’t exist as they do for broadcasters and publishers. Because of this, we’re seeing more consumers turn to streaming news sources to get that breaking news information they need to stay informed, and more importantly, healthy and safe.”
To download the complete Q1 2020 Brightcove Global Video Index inclusive of all data, visit: https://www.brightcove.com/en/video-index