Consumer insights company Toluna has published research into the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and the media choices of Australian viewers, finding that 74% of Australians intend to watch the games on live TV.
The research, which surveyed 1085 Australian respondents, found that a further 12% would view this year’s Olympics on catchup TV, with 8% planning to watch through live streaming, and 6% catching up on streaming services.
The findings reveal that while the flexibility of streaming services has made the games more accessible than ever, the majority of Australians (82%) still prefer to watch major sporting events on live TV. Respondents pointed to better camera angles (31%) and better commentary (26%) as the main reasons for choosing live TV coverage over streaming services, with a further 30% of respondents choosing TV because they don’t have access to streaming services.
Unsurprisingly, live TV viewership tended to skew towards the older generations, with 82% of those over 55 choosing traditional viewing options, compared to only 62% of 18 to 34 year-olds. Similarly, while only 3% of over 55s plan to watch the Olympics via streaming services, live stream will be the preferred choice for 14% of 18 to 34 year-olds, and 9% of 35 to 54 year-olds.
Toluna’s research also found that ski jumping and figure skating were the most anticipated events of the games, with a respective 48% and 44% of respondents looking forward to watch. Other popular events included snowboarding, bobsled, speed skating, ice dancing, alpine skiing, ice hockey and luge.