Spanish homes turning to streaming video

Over four in 10 Spanish homes with internet access were accessing streaming video services such as Netflix, HBO and Amazon Prime Video at the end of last year, according to data released by markets regulator the CNMC.

According to the watchdog, 40.5% of internet homes in Spain were using online pay streaming platforms at the end of the fourth quarter, up from 31.7% in Q4 2018.

The CNMC said that it was important to note that the numbers reflect viewing before the onset of the coronavirus crisis, and that the country’s strict lockdown had led to a major spike in online consumption of video since the start of the year.

According to the Q4 data, 48.3% of Spaniards with internet access were consuming online content at least once a week, with 54.9% watching short-form video – the most popular form of content consumed online.

About half – 49.5% – were watching episodic series online, while 30.5% were watching movies and 17.2% were watching sports.

The CNMC panel survey for December also found that mobile phones were far and away the most popular device for Spaniards to connect to the web, with 90.8% using them regularly for this purpose, up from 87.3% a year earlier.

Some 17.1% connected to the internet regularly via their TV sets, up from 13.5%, while desktop and laptop use declined, from 37.5% to 34% and 51.6% to 49.5% respectively. Tablet use also declined from 34.6% to 32.3% while the use of game consoles to connect to the internet increased from 5.3% to7.4%.

Some 20.4% of smartphone users regularly used their devices to view video content.