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Summer Break Doesn’t Mean a Break From TV

May 26, 2021

It’s SUMMER Time! That’s right… summer is here, and we’re finally on our way to getting back to some sort of ‘normalcy’ post pandemic. So, most would assume that means TV takes a back seat for most consumers, right? Interestingly enough, according to a recent Big Village CARAVAN survey, that doesn’t seem to be the case. While we saw a slight decrease in May, 66% of US adults still say they anticipate watching the same amount or more TV than they did during the pandemic. With TV still a mainstay… what does this mean for your brand, what does this do to your advertising strategy, and how can you capitalize on the news? 

Take a look below at a sneak peek of our new quarterly report, Media Pulse, to find out more about consumer TV consumption behavior – how much are they watching, linear vs. CTV, and the differences in consumption between generations. 

And be sure to check back in later in June for the full report findings! 


To Tune in or Not To Tune in to TV

Gen Z is the most likely to watch more TV this summer, whereas Boomers are the least likely to watch more TV this summer.

 

We’ll probably watch a bit less TV since we’ll resume going away for long weekends about twice a month and be dining out & socializing with friends and family more as restrictions lessen  in the coming weeks/months.” – Baby Boomer 


Linear Leads 

Gen Z is the only generation spending less time on Linear services. Millennials, Gen X, and Baby Boomers are all fairly flat with the percentage of time spent on Linear. Baby Boomers still spend much more time on Linear than any other generation. 


 

What to watch on TV?  

While Gen Z intends to watch more TV this summer, they are having the most difficult time discovering new shows/movies. 

“Most of the time when I got to watch TV, I can’t find anything to watch. When this happens, I usually try to go into Google and see top shows or movies that are trending at that time. I’ll watch one of those, or if I don’t find anything, I’ll just shut off the TV and watch nothing.” – Gen Z 

“Yes, I have trouble finding new things to watch. Usually it happens anytime before 3pm. At this point, I will usually pull up YouTube or Twitch to find some fun games to watch. Most of the time, I will look at my subscriptions on YouTube to watch new content.” – Gen Z 


Methodology 

This Online CARAVAN® omnibus survey was conducted on May 3-5, 2021. Approximately 1,000 adults selected from opt-in panels were surveyed. The results are also weighted to U.S. Census data to be demographically representative.