Ofcom report highlights online video usage

The UK is now the second biggest market for online video services, with nearly 80% of 18- to 24-year-old broadband users watching music videos online, according to new research from Ofcom. China is the biggest market.

The latest International Communications Market report, which analyses trends in the £840bn global television, telecommunications and wireless communications industry, also found that 60% of consumers in the same age group are now watching TV via broadband, compared to 82% in China.

It also shows that UK consumers buy more music online than any other European country involved in the survey. In 2005, consumers spent an average of 63p per head annually, which is double the figure for consumers in France and Germany.

The UK is also leading the world in the take-up of digital television, with around 70% of UK household accessing the service via at least one TV set, compared with 54% in the US. Moreover, demand for broadband services in the UK has surpassed the US by a slight margin, with take-up levels increasing to 39% of households.

The survey, which was released today by the media regulator, compares UK data, consumer attitudes and industry performance to the US, China, Japan and major European countries such as Germany, France, Italy and Spain.