3min: TV is dead, long live TV
Copying US sites, such as Hulu, the Web Series / Webisodes site 3min.de is gaining popularity in Germany while traditional TV formats for younger people (such as MTV or Viva) are struggling. The site features custom-produced and ad-financed short webisodes in categories such as Fiction, Comedy, Real Life, Sport, Music, Film.
The trend also caught on for music TV with sites such as Putpat, still in beta testing, which caters to young people’s expectations, claiming: “we only have what you really want to see. No ringtone ads, no soap operas, only music. Music you really want to see, because you decide what is on, not a program director”
Based on market trends of a rising digital lifestyle in the younger demographic and their need for interactive TV, the site is targeted at predominantely urban teens and tweens, but is also showing to catch on with older viewers. The trend is aided in Germany by the fact that Tivo-like recording is not commonplace or available, which makes this type of on-demand entertainment attractive.
Looking at demographic data supports the trend. The average age of TV viewers for traditional TV public channels is 60 (!) and established private TV channels only skew somewhat younger (47 years). Looking at this data, it seems as though only older Germans living in rural areas actually seem to consume TV, while the younger, urban demographic expects interaction, influence on programming, specialty niche programs, on-demand content and participation which will be made possible by integrated partnerships with social networking sites such as Facebook and German equivalent StudiVZ.
