Only 13% of Viewers Watch the Super Bowl on Connected TVs, Says AdColony
With all the recent headlines about the "streaming wars," it's easy to think that OTT is on par with pay TV, but the reality is that for major live events, traditional television is still the clear choice for most viewers. A new survey conducted by mobile ad platform AdColony finds that 72% of respondents plan to watch the Super Bowl on TV, while only 13% plan to watch on connected TVs and 11% plan to watch on their phone.
That first number is down significantly from last year, when 87% said they planned to watch on TV, but the connected TV number remained relatively stagnant—the 2019 survey showed 12% planned to watch on connected TVs. The number who plan to watch on smartphones went up from 7%. The 2019 numbers add up to more than 100%, because some respondents plan to watch on multiple devices at once. That's true in 2020 as well, but this year's numbers add up to 96%, suggesting that some of the people who are abandoning traditional TV are going to be watching on tablets, laptops, or other devices.
What's more, the number of respondents who think it's important to keep up with the game on multiple devices is only 31%. 29% say they'll use their phones to text during the game, 28% say they'll play mobile games, and 27% will use their devices to browse social media. Those numbers are all up from 2019.
Beyond the switch in device habits, the AdColony survey suggests that the Super Bowl has an age problem: 92% of viewers are 35 years and older, up from 83% last year. And the much-vaunted Super Bowl ads may not have the kind of shelf-life that brands think. Only 34% of respondents say they are likely to look up ads from the game and watch them again, while 53% say they're somewhat unlikely, very unlikely, or absolutely unlikely to look up the ad after it airs the first time.
Check out more results of the AdColony survey in the infographic below.
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