NEW YORK, NY — The number of consumers watching video streamed through a browser over broadband networks has doubled over the past year, according to a new report from ABI Research.During a survey of online households in the United States, ABI noticed a jump from 32-percent to 63-percent in the number of respondents who reported using a broadband internet connection to watch video content. Researchers said they believe the increase is due to growth in the amount of rich content available in ad-supported format on portals and through social networks, as well as increasing demand from consumers for video in both short and long formats online.

“Consumers are changing their online habits quickly,” said ABI Research Director Michael Wolf. “Broadband speeds have continued to increase at the same time that Hollywood has decided online distribution is a legitimate monetization opportunity that will increase total return on their video assets and expand audiences. At the same time, easy-to-use content-creation tools are being put into the hands of consumers, and this has effectively created new forms of communication and entertainment.”
 
All forms of content, including long-form TV shows, are contributing to the rise of broadband video consumption, and much of the longer-form content today is watched by younger viewers, Wolf noted. During the survey, nearly half of those younger than 25- and 53-percent of those aged 25-29 indicated they watched TV shows or movies online once a month or more.

Older viewers were much more likely to have experimented once with online shows: Three-quarters of those over 65 who watch video online told ABI they have never watched TV shows or movies online.
 
“Today’s younger consumers are developing habits that will mean drastic changes for the video entertainment market,” Wolf said. “Many consume a large percentage or even a majority of their video entertainment through online distribution today, and we believe this trend will continue to accelerate as more efforts are made to put this content on various non-PC screens.”