Survey: 18% of us are watching online video from a TV

A new study shows that online video is creeping into our lives through many different devices

Who just watches traditional cable on a TV set at the time when the program is airing? Not many of us. Thanks to YouTube, Netflix, Amazon, gaming consoles, DVRs, tablets and so many other tool and tricks, we experience TV in a much different way than we did five or 10 years ago.

According to a new study out from NPD, 18% of people are accessing online video on TVs on a daily basis, with some 25% accessing it several times a week, with movies driving much of that growth.

This survey looked at 14,000 consumers across 14 countries to see how consumers view online content, how often, what devices are used for viewing online content, how frequently they watch online video from providers like Netflix and Hulu, and much more.

The study also noted that tablets and smartphones are also continuing to see more popularity for the viewing of online video. Even as both laptops and desktops remain more popular than tablets and smartphones as a place to watch online video, those people that do have tablets, are actually spending more time watching video on them than they are PCs, by as much as 30% more.

But what country is the most online-video-hungry, you may ask? Why it is urban China. China’s urban users beat every other country surveyed, across every device greatly because, NPD says,

In the US, more than 45% of respondents claimed that they watched video on laptops or desktops and just around 25% used a standard TV for their video viewing. 

While mobile devices are clearly the easiest way to access online video content, TVs, this year made a comeback, proving that online video can be enjoyed by many on a traditional TV set.

Products like the Xbox or set-top boxes from pay-TV providers that link up with broadband-enabled on-demand services have also helped propell TV into a strong category for online video, especially in particular markets.

In Mexico, some 30% of users watch online video on TVs, but also some 20% don't watch any type of online video -- a number that was outshines by India, where 67% people respondents stated that they don't view online video content at all.

“Online content is mostly viewed on computers or mobile devices such as tablets and smart phones, but TVs are increasingly becoming devices of choice for consumers, particularly since an increasing numbers of sets have either built-in connectivity or can be connected to the internet via a peripheral device such as a connected Blu-ray player or set top box, among others,” noted NPD DisplaySearch research director Riddhi Patel in a statement.

NPD says that 44% of viewers have “no interest” in online content on TVs and another 30% said they do not own the equipment to watch online video.

And even if they were given the tools to watch online video on TV, only one-third of those without the possibility to do so now say they would want to do so.