Glance Analyzes Young Adult Audience Consumption

John Hopewell

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CANNES — What excites young adult audiences? Three answers are authenticity,entertainment and the environment, according to a Glance study presented Monday at Cannes Mipcom trade show. The presentation also underscored radical changes in TV consumption now sweeping not just the U..S and U.K. but now major territories in Western Europe. Five takeaways:

1.Authenticity

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This “relates to programs that are about young adults and which reflect their reality in an authentic manner,” said Glance content insight director Avril Blondelot, citing the buzzed-up South Korean four-part show “Nagi’s Long Vacation,” about a thirty-something woman at a crossroads who decides to quit her job and leave her boyfriend to embark on a new journey. Distributed by TBS, and bowing in July, the show scored 20% above its slot average in 20-34s. Multiple programs charting the search for meaning or a transition into the workspace

– accompanied by existential questioning and the search for answers – figure among the 1,400 audience boosters – recent program that perform better than timeslot average – that Glance examined for its study. These include Canadian comedy series “Ming’s Dynasty,” from Touchpoint Films and 775 Media Corp, about two young rappers who, instead of finding fame and fortune, are forced to take over a family Chinese restaurant in Alberta.

2.Fast-paced, Immersive Entertainment

Or young adults may simply want to be entertained – from highly immersive fast-paced and even violent drama, such as Netflix Swedish hit “Quicksand,” about a mass shooting, and the Fremantle-distributed “Tainted,” aired on Norway’s NRK, turning on a Norwegian Pakistani girl who is raped and swears revenge. “The show takes in hot-button issues such as sexual abuse, multiculturalism and women empowerment , so is really current,” Blondelot commented. Germany’s “1.30,” sold by Banijay Rights, gives contestants just 90 seconds to perform on stage. Gameshow “Hush Money,” shopped by All3Media and sparking good word of mouth, offers contestants a load of money is they manage to survive an ordeal of frights and not scream out loud.

3.The Environment

“Environmental issues works well with all age groups but very much concern Young Adults,” Blondelot said, suggesting that the best way to engage audiences was through drama, citing “Chernobyl” and, from India’s Zee Entertainment, “Skyfire.” Of documentary and reality shows, DR1’s “The Masters,” from Denmark’s Strong Productions, challenges players to find a cool new use for old furniture, finding an upbeat twist in a generally downbeat scenario.

4.Top YA Genres

What program genres work best with YAs? A Glance Young Adult report, analyzing access and primetime on the main six youth-targeting channels in 10 key territories, suggested that comedy made up 7% of programming, compared to 3% for all channels. But the genre king is entertainment – reality, gameshows et al.- which comprised a huge 38% of content and over-performed in ratings compared to factual and fiction. Entertainment also endures among millennials. 71% of the highest-rated programs repeated from one year to the next.

5.The Consumer Revolution Continues

If YAs are tempted back to TV, they may well, however watch it in ways which must be of concern to established broadcasters. Timeshiftimg has already swept the U.S.- and the U.K.. where 80% of households timeshift at least once a month. It is now increasing in Spain and France, where that statistics stands at 37% and 40% respectively, said Glance VP Frédéric Vaulpre. Timeshifting increases with the popularity of a property, he argued. Aired on ITV2 from June 12, Season 5 of “Love Island” saw timeshifting hit 178% of live viewing.

That figure comes as market shares for main channel groups in the U.S. and U.K. have more or less held stable over 2015-19, he added. In much of the rest of Western Europe, that cannot be said to be the case. Of main channel groups in Spain, Germany and Italy over that period, only one, Germany’s ZDF, has actually increased market share, Vaulpre observed. Creeping market erosion may of course help to explain many of these groups’ relatively recent strategic moves.

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