Research - Over 70% Of People In UK Prepare To Watch 2022 Winter Olympics - Live Television Is The Winner

A study by leading consumer insights provider Toluna about the 2022 Winter Olympics and media choices. The survey questioned 1,244 people in the UK.

KEY FINDINGS

Nothing beats traditional television

• 71% of people in the UK are going to watch the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics with, perhaps surprisingly, the majority of respondents planning to watch the games live on television.
• 78% of respondents said their preferred way of watching live sporting events including the Olympics is via TV.
• Whilst the popularity and availability of streaming services has exploded in recent years, nearly 1 in 5 of those surveyed said that they’ll watch the games on catch up TV and only 8% plan to watch the event via streaming services. In general, just 16% prefer to watch live sporting events via streaming services.
• Indeed, 83% of respondents stated that they much preferred to watch the Olympics on TV because they believe there’s better commentary on TV (35%) and the camera angles and coverage are better (35%). 13% of those asked said they simply don’t like streaming services whereas 18% do not have access to streaming services.

But streaming services do have their place and are a popular choice for some

• Amongst the minority of people who prefer streaming services to terrestrial television, over half of respondents (56%) said it’s because of the flexibility and convenience streaming services provides and the ability to use these services any time and any where across all types of devices as long as there’s a good internet connection.
• 17% of people said they don’t own a TV or have access to one so watch events such as the Olympics via streaming services on their phone or tablet.

Watching TV programmes via social media channels is a firm favourite

• More than half (54%) of those surveyed said that while they enjoy watching television programmes, including coverage on live events like the 2022 Winter Olympics, they tend to do this via a social media channel. For example, watching an ITV or Channel 4 broadcast via Facebook or YouTube.

And what can’t we wait to watch at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics?

• Almost half of respondents (48%) said they’re looking forward to the ski jumping event the most
• 42% of people can’t wait to watch the figure skating athletes
• 40% of those surveyed are most excited for the bobsled event
• Snowboarding is the most popular choice for over a third of people in the UK (37%)
• 35% of respondents are looking forward to watching alpine skiing the most.