Channel 4 and Twentieth Century Fox are the first to participate in the Smart TV ad trials, designed to measure how consumers engage with ads on connected TVs and Blu-ray players.The results form the first part of a two-phase research project to test the viewing habits of 500 Samsung connected TV owners in the UK.  

The first phase was dedicated to exploring the usage habits of connected TV and Blu-ray player owners with the view to then compare them to the consumption habits of people in the average UK home.

Meanwhile, the second part of the research will test the effectiveness of various ad campaigns run by Channel 4 and Twentieth Century Fox, due to finish early next year. These will include a mixture of display and video-format ads. Decipher will measure consumer reaction to the ads, including audience reach, retention and brand awareness.

The results of the first phase showed 85% of respondents claimed that the “Smart hub”, which refers to the Samsung connected TV app-like interface, “stimulates” their TV viewing, with nearly half (49%) claiming they watch more TV because of it. Their primary reason for doing so was that the Smart Hub lets them perform multiple tasks on a single screen and gives them access to on-demand TV content, including BBC iPlayer and LoveFilm.

Over half of the 500 respondents said they use fewer devices to access the internet, preferring to do so via their connected TVs. Around 84% said they regularly access IP-connected apps to watch TV content.

Decipher’s CEO Nigel Walley said the results will “dispel the misconception that people are not yet connecting or using the connected functionality of their Smart TVs and other devices.”

Rovi is also running similar trials in the US, which revealed around 80% of respondents noticed the presence of ads on their connected TVs while a third of those clicked through.