Films and series have long been among the most watched genres on TV stations. According to official TV ratings data, they account for 44 per cent of total viewing among viewers aged 15 and over.
"This type of content is among the most popular across all age groups - both men and women,"
adds Michaela Suráková, Managing Director of Atmedia. This is also confirmed by the composition of the Czech TV market.
Among paid thematic channels, film and series channels account for more than 40 percent of all those measured. These include AXN, AXN Black, AXN White, CANAL Action, CS Film, FilmBox, FilmBox Stars or JOJ Cinema.
Czechs are attracted to local productions
In terms of the origin of films and series, local productions have long been leading on TV stations. Czech titles account for 42 per cent of the total time spent watching films and series, followed by North American and European films and series.
"Local films and series are also increasingly becoming part of the programming offer of pay-TV channels, which viewers can find in the offer of pay-TV operators, similar to streaming services," says Michaela Suráková. "For example, the most-watched film last year on FilmBox Stars was the comedy The Puppies," she adds.
Czech and Czechoslovak films were also among the most-watched programmes last year on FilmBox, such as the comedies 2Bobule and Prvok, Shampoo, Tečka a Karel. CS Film, which celebrates its 20th anniversary on the Czech market this year, offers its viewers exclusively Czech films.
Films and series also dominate streaming services
A similar trend can be observed on streaming services, where the most popular genres include comedies, crime, action and adventure films and series, family stories, as well as titles from the world of science fiction and fantasy.
"The popularity of each genre varies between streaming services. For example, science fiction and fantasy are most often searched for by viewers on global VOD platforms, while family films are watched mainly on local ones,"
michaela Suráková describes, referring to the results of the Atmedia index survey for the second half of last year.
There are also significant differences in the choice of origin of the content watched. Users of domestic platforms, such as Voyo or Prima , most often watch Czech films and series - including original productions of these services. Approximately half of their users prefer local titles.
"Local streaming services often build their offer on domestic productions, which is their main competitive advantage over global players," explains Michaela Suráková. In contrast, users of global VOD services such as Netflix, Max or Disney are most interested in original productions of these services and foreign titles. Around one half of users search for original content here.
Czech dubbing also wins on streaming
Regardless of the chosen platform - TV stations or streaming services - dubbing remains the preferred way for Czech viewers to watch programmes. The Czech version is preferred by two-thirds of users of paid VOD platforms, followed by watching the original version with Czech subtitles.
"Although interest in the original version with Czech subtitles is higher among younger viewers, dubbing still dominates across all age groups," Michaela Suráková points out. "Czechs are used to dubbing and demand it - not only on TV stations, but also on streaming services."
In the second half of last year, 47 percent of Czechs aged 15-69 used at least one paid VoD service. On average, they used two different services at the same time. The top five most used platforms on the Czech market have long been Netflix, Voyo, Max, Disney and Prima, followed by Amazon Prime Video, SkyShowtime, CANAL and Apple TV.
Despite the emergence of new platforms, TV broadcasting remains the most widespread way of consuming video content. A total of 92 per cent of Czech households watch TV content. On any given day, 68 per cent of viewers aged 15 turn on the television and spend an average of 3 hours and 36 minutes watching it.
Source: mam.cz