Canadians now spending more on Internet than television, According to CRTC

Canadians spent more money on Internet access than television subscriptions for the first time last year as the demand for data exploded and the desire for traditional TV packages waned, says a report from the federal telecom regulator.

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has released it’s 2016 Communications Monitoring Report and it revealed 2015 communications service industry revenues.

Earnings made by communications companies offering internet access collected $9.8 billion from customers, while subscription television services accounted for $8.9 billion.

Residential Internet data downloads increased 40% from 2014-15, while wireless data increased 44% in the same period.

Other consumer data released from the report:

• 8% of Canadians watched TV exclusively online in 2015
• Typical internet TV users watched 5.8 hrs of online TV content per week in 2015
• Canadians 65+ watched the most TV in 2015, with an average of 42 hours/week
• 24% of Canadian households are cellphone-only, while 14% have a landline telephone only
• Almost three-quarters (73%) of Canadians have a smartphone

Overall, the commission said industry revenues reached $65.7 Billion in 2015, up $64.1 billion in 2014, a gain of 2.5%, slightly above the five-year average growth 2.1%.

Agencies/Canadajournal