UK adults will spend almost 1 hour a day watching digital videos this year according to eMarketer

The figures come from eMarketer’s first ever digital video viewing forecast, which has predicted that over the next 12 months individuals in the UK will spend more than 27 minutes each day watching digital videos on mobile alone.

The three-fold increase to daily mobile viewing time coincides with consumers spending more time than ever on their devices, and amid forecasts that indicate mobile’s share of ad spend will account for two-fifths of budgets this year. By 2019, eMarketer predicts that more than half of ad budgets will be spent on mobile media.

Digital giants like Facebook and Google have invested heavily in video over the past few years, with the former saying it will place a focus on short snackable content over the coming year.

Despite a proclivity towards digital, there is still a clear appetite for more traditional TV-style content, with the popularity of streaming services like Netflix and BBC iPlayer help to drive adoption of digital viewing habits.

"UK adults’ love affair with the small screen has translated into the digital realm," said eMarketer’s senior analyst Bill Fisher. "Whether they’re consuming digital video content via their smartphones, laptops or smart TVs, the average time spent with video content continues to rise. Small declines in time spent with traditional broadcast TV are being more than offset by growth in TV-like content on other platforms."

Overall UK adults will squeeze an average of just over nine hours per day of media usage into their waking hours this year; an hour and 16 minutes more than five years ago.