Digital vs traditional media in New Zealand

Friday, 20 September 2013, 5:08 pm
Press Release: Roy Morgan Research

Digital vs traditional media in New Zealand
[Full release with charts: http://www.roymorgan.com/findings/5201-digital-traditional-media-new-zealand-201309200004]

Source: Roy Morgan Single Source (New Zealand and Australia), January 2013-June 2013, n=6,346 (NZ) and 25,341 (Aus). Base: New Zealanders and Australians aged 14+

It’s no secret that New Zealanders are spending more time than ever on the internet, but traditional media still plays an important role in their lives, according to findings in the latest Digital Universe report from Roy Morgan Research. In fact TV, radio and print still account for 71.4% of the time Kiwis spend with media per day.

So how much time do New Zealanders spend consuming traditional and digital media on a daily basis? Overall, they average 7 hours and 54 minutes a day, significantly more than Australians (7 hours 15 minutes).

While a marginally higher percentage of Australians (94.2%) than New Zealanders (92.8%) watch TV in an average seven-day period, Kiwis spend more time watching it: an average of 2:48 each day, compared to Aussies’ 2:40. This slightly elevated viewing time may be related to the fact that more than half (50.9%) of the New Zealand population subscribe to Pay TV — whereas less than one in three Australians (28.8%) are subscribers.

Internet catching up

While TV is currently the media New Zealanders and Australians spend most time with each day, the internet is closing the gap, with people from both countries spending more than 30% more time online than they did in 2009.

In the six months to June 2013, Kiwis spent an average 2:15 online per day (up from 1:42 in the six months to June 2009), marginally less than Aussies (2:28, up from 1:39). Meanwhile, average TV viewing times declined on both sides of the Tasman.

Of course, many people are online at the same time as they’re watching TV (posting Facebook updates during the ad breaks for example), so there can be some crossover in the time they spend with each medium.

This analogue life

However, New Zealand’s increasingly digital tendencies haven’t completely superseded its fondness for old-school media such as newspapers, magazines, radio and even printed catalogues. Case in point? A greater portion of the average Kiwi’s daily media consumption is spent listening to the radio (29.1%) than surfing the web (28.6%). Again, some may do both at the same time, while also reading the paper — so these percentages aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive.

At 2:18, New Zealanders’ average daily radio consumption is more than half an hour greater than their Aussie neighbours (1:41). Radio has a further-reaching penetration in Australia, though, with 84.8% of the population listening to it in any given seven-day period, compared to 79.8% of Kiwis.

Perhaps most surprising of all is how much Kiwis love their catalogues: 76.7% of the population look at least one in any given four week period (compared to 61.0% of Australians).

Pip Elliott, General Manager, Roy Morgan Research NZ, says:

“For two countries that are so similar in many ways, New Zealand and Australia show some interesting differences in their consumption of media. While penetration of many media is more widespread in Australia, New Zealanders tend to spend more time with them (with the exception of the internet).

“The average daily time Kiwis spend online has shot up since 2009, while the time we spend watching TV has declined (despite our very healthy Pay TV subscription rate) and we expect that the internet will eventually take over as the media we spend most time with. With ever-more television and radio available online, not to mention magazines and newspapers, the internet is fast becoming a one-stop media shop!

“The Digital Universe provides a detailed overview of the myriad platforms, products and trends shaping the digital landscape in New Zealand today, giving marketers an indispensable insight into the media consumption habits of their connected consumers.”

Visit our online store to find out more about the latest Digital Universe report for New Zealand.

Our online store also stocks an extensive range of media profiles: from Pay TV subscriber profiles, to newspaper reader profiles and website visitor profiles.

About Roy Morgan Research

Roy Morgan Research is the largest independent Australian research company, with offices in each state of Australia, as well as in New Zealand, the United States and the United Kingdom. A full service research organisation specialising in omnibus and syndicated data, Roy Morgan Research has over 70 years’ experience in collecting objective, independent information on consumers.

In Australia, Roy Morgan Research is considered to be the authoritative source of information on financial behaviour, readership, voting intentions and consumer confidence. Roy Morgan Research is a specialist in recontact customised surveys which provide invaluable and effective qualitative and quantitative information regarding customers and target markets.

Roy Morgan Research New Zealand

Roy Morgan Research was set up in New Zealand in the 1990s and has been collecting information across a wide range of industries in New Zealand ever since. Roy Morgan currently has over 10 years of trended data on a geographically and demographically representative sample of over 12,000 New Zealanders aged 14+.

Margin of Error

The margin of error to be allowed for in any estimate depends mainly on the number of interviews on which it is based. Margin of error gives indications of the likely range within which estimates would be 95% likely to fall, expressed as the number of percentage points above or below the actual estimate. Allowance for design effects (such as stratification and weighting) should be made as appropriate.

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Roy Morgan Research

New Zealand's leading social and market research company

A full service research organisation specialising in omnibus and syndicated data, Roy Morgan Research has over 70 years' experience in collecting objective, independent information on consumers. Roy Morgan Research was set up in New Zealand in the 1990s and has been collecting information across a wide range of industries in New Zealand ever since. Roy Morgan currently has over 10 years of trended data on a geographically and demographically representative sample of over 12,000 New Zealanders aged 14+.

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