While streaming got a boost from the pandemic, the economic weakness caused by the virus hurt advertising aimed at streaming viewers, according to a new report from Conviva.
In its State of Streaming Report for the second quarter, Conviva said that ad demand dropped, with attempts to insert ads down 22% in the U.S. and down 28% globally, compared to the first quarter, due in part to the lack of sports.
But Conviva found that the quality of stream advertising improve, with viewers spending 38% less time waiting for an ad to start. Viewers leaving before an ad started dropped 22%. The picture quality of ads, as measured by bitrate, was up 53%.
“Shelter-in-place mandates skyrocketed streaming viewership in April, led by Europe which saw a 174% increase year over year,” said Bill Demas, CEO of Conviva. “Unfortunately advertising moved in the opposite direction with global demand significantly reduced due to COVID-19. We expect advertising to bounce back in the coming quarters as the industry and viewers acclimate to a ‘new normal’ including streaming being part of the everyday routine.”
Streaming growth slowed in May and June slowed from April, when viewing was up 81%, compared to the previous year.
Global share of smart TV viewing more than doubled as viewing time increased 239% year over year. Viewing was also up on connected devices. Viewing via Roku, Amazon Fire, Chromecast and others was up 61%. Viewing on game consoles was up 55%.
Connected TV devices had the largest share of viewing time in both North America (56%) and Europe (32%).
