Japan digital terrestrial TV shift to boost average TV spot cost : SPI

Following the shift to digital broadcasting, TV viewers in Japan will be required to replace their current analog receiving sets with a digital receiver and connect to a new cable service receiving antenna.

Based on proprietary survey data, SPI is predicting household viewership following the shift to digital will likely fall by about 10 per cent across the 50 million households in Japan, with viewership among MF1 (men and women aged 20 to 34) likely to see the largest decline,  plunging by around 20 to 30 per cent. 

Moverover, based on the viewership declines, changes in the SPI Index (average cost for the TV spot market) are also expected. As a result, SPI estimates that in the short-term, average monthly TV spot costs will rise by 6.3 to 11.1 per cent year-on-year, with the inflationary trend likely to continue until March 2012.
 
SPI also points out that due to the subsequent effects of multi-channel broadcasting, media planning methodologies are likely to undergo fundamental changes in Japan.

SPI outlines some tips for advertisers to cope with these impending changes and recommends that appropriate actions be taken.
 
For example, shifting to multi-channels, TV’s efficiency as a mass media is already declining. Conversely, the usefulness of TV as a targeted medium is expected to rise. It is necessary to clearly define TV’s role within the overall integrated planning scheme, rather than taking a mass TV default mindset and approach.

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