New research shows a distinct lack of appetite for internet streaming of football matches, just as the Football League looks to the web for new revenue streams.
Just 2% of respondents in a joint YouGov and SMG Insight survey of 2,122 British adults said they were likely to stream football over a home computer, despite a concerted effort among broadcasters and football clubs to generate revenue from football fans consuming media online.
A third of 18- to 34-year-olds said they plan to watch Barclays Premier League games outside the home this season, with 23% opting for a pub or club and 11% saying they are most likely to watch the game at a friend's house.
Just over half – 51% – of respondents aged 18-34 said they intent to watch Barclays Premier League games at home, compared with 84% of over-45s.
Leeds United is one of the first UK football clubs to introduce a pilot scheme enabling overseas pay-per-view online viewing of games, as the club made Saturday's nPower Championship match against Millwall available to viewers in South Africa, Germany and Spain.
The broadcaster ESPN has launched a mobile application featuring Barclays Premier League highlights, while BSkyB also plans to stream 115 games live via its Mobile TV service.
"Mobile is an increasingly important technology as hand-held devices become more sophisticated," Richard Scudamore, chief executive of the Premier League, has said. "Therefore a good service with a strong partner is important to us both in terms of accessibility and complementing live coverage."
Yahoo also won the lucrative rights to host online highlights of Barclays Premier League games for the next three seasons, with big-name brands such as Heineken, BT, Adidas and Sony Pictures booking advertising around the exclusive content.
Last week, Ofcom's Communications Market Report for 2010 showed an increasing inclination for people to multitask while consuming media. "The ability of people to surf the web on their laptop while also watching TV has given people a licence to roam while staying connected," said Peter Phillips, Ofcom's strategy and market developments partner.
Hoping to sate this appetite, Virgin Media launched its Sofa Stadium app as a means to make money by connecting fans over the internet who are watching the same football match on TV.
