LAST year, the average person in Scotland spent an average of 4.1 hours per day watching television, slightly higher than the UK average of 3.9 hours. And according to broadcasting regulators, Ofcom, that average 4.1 hours was split 52 per cent among the main public service broadcasting channels (BBC One, BBC Two, ITV/STV, Channel 4 and Channel 5) and 48 per cent non-PSB channels.
Says the watchdog, in its annual Communications Market Report, some 21 per cent of that average 4.1 hours was spent watching BBC One alone, with the figures for the other PSB channels being nine per cent for BBC Two, 15 per cent for ITV/STV, five per cent for Channel 4 and five per cent for Channel 5.
But, says the report: “Between 2008 and 2013, there was a nine percentage point reduction (to 52 per cent) in the combined share of the five main PSB channels in Scotland. This reduction was the least among the devolved nations (Wales ten per cent and Northern Ireland 13 per cent) and the same as the average decrease across the UK.”
However, the report then goes on to say: “In Scotland, the five main PSB channels experienced an 8.5 percentage points decrease in their combined share of total TV viewing compared to 2008 (one percentage point lower than the UK average decrease of 9.5pp). At the same time, the PSB portfolio channels saw a 6.1pp increase (UK average increase 6.9pp). This resulted in a net loss overall of 2.4pp, lower than the UK average net loss (2.6pp) and the lowest loss of all the devolved nations or any single ITV licensee region, except Border (Figure 2.10).
“In 2013, Border was the only region where the five main PSBs did not lose viewing share, adding 0.1pp compared to 2008 (57.8 per cent share in 2008 vs. 57.9 per cent share in 2013). Combined with a 5.7pp share increase to the PSB portfolio channels, Border had a net share gain of 5.8pp.”
And later in the chapter, the report continues: “In 2013, BBC One’s early-evening nation’s news bulletin, Reporting Scotland, attracted an average 32 per cent share of TV viewing in Scotland – higher than the UK average for the same slot at 29 per cent. STV’s counterpart bulletin, STV News at Six, attracted a lower average share (25 per cent), although considerably higher than the Channel 3 UK average (18 per cent).”
So, it might be no surprise that: “Scotland has the highest proportion of adults using the television to keep up with Scottish national news. In Scotland in 2013, 57 per cent of respondents cited television as their main source of local news26, up by three percentage points on the previous year. All three of the devolved nations reported higher than the average UK figure of 50 per cent. The second most popular source for local news in Scotland was the internet – 17 per cent of those surveyed claimed this to be their main source of local news, four percentage points higher than the UK average of 13 per cent.”
Source: The Communications Market: Scotland, publ Ofcom, August 7 2014.
