Study: The Smart TV Can be Used as an Audio Device

RADIO ONLINE | Wednesday, November 1, 2023 | 11:23am CT

Edison Research

According to Edison Research, Smart TVs and TV devices offer many paths for listeners to find audio. Listeners can stream music or spoken word content through apps like Spotify, Amazon Music or Audible. They can activate their favorite voice enabled assistant such as Amazon Echo or Google Home through their smart TVs and listen to a podcast, music or other audio content. They can put YouTube on and listen to the music whether they watch the videos or not. They can listen to their favorite AM/FM stations through the stations' website or any number of streaming apps such as iHeart, Audacy or TuneIn.

The increased availability of audio through internet-connected TVs is evident in the increase in total daily audio time spent with the devices, shown in the graphic below.

In 2016, Americans age 13+ spent 2% of their total audio time listening on Internet-connected TVs or Internet-connected TV devices. The latest data from Edison Research's Share of Ear shows that 6.9% of daily audio time among those 13+ in the U.S. is spent listening on an Internet-connected TV or TV device. The rate of increase has taken off in the past few years, almost doubling since 2020. With these audio devices being centrally located in many homes, and with people spending more time at home in the last several years, it will not be surprising if these numbers continue to rise.