The counterattack by TV agencies after the interview with Isabelle Allanche, director of YouTube Ads, in The Media Leader last Monday. SNPTV wanted to react to comments concerning the platform’s audiences, based on Médiamétrie data. According to the union bringing together TV agencies, these statements do not reflect reality and require clarification.
Television, still leader in coverage and viewing time
The data shows that television remains largely dominant in terms of coverage and viewing time. For people aged 4 and over, the Google platform reaches 42 million French people each month, or 62% coverage, compared to 62 million for television, which reaches 98% of this age group. Compared to television channels, YouTube only ranks 11th. Among 15-49 year olds, YouTube reaches 24.6 million people per month, or 91% of this age group, compared to 27 million for television, which reaches 99.8%. This places YouTube in 3rd position, according to SNPTV. YouTube is neither “the 1st channel” nor “the 1st video destination ahead of TV channels”.
Regarding listening time, the gap is even more marked. For those aged 4 and over, viewers spend an average of 2 hours 57 minutes per day watching television, compared to only 26 minutes on YouTube. Among 15-49 year olds, television records an average daily viewing time of 1 hour 38 minutes, compared to 46 minutes for YouTube. These figures, from Médiamétrie, cover the period from January to October 2024.
Advertising impact and attention largely in favor of television
YouTube also claimed to offer an ROI 1.7 times higher than television. SNPTV disputes this assertion by referring to the study carried out by Ekimetrics. According to the latter, the ROI of online video is slightly higher than that of television, but only in a proportion of 1.2 times, or 7 euros for online video compared to 5.9 euros for television. Furthermore, taking into account the contribution to sales, television remains the most efficient media, representing 45% of sales generated by the media for 37% of investments, far ahead of online video, which only contributes 8%. % of sales.
When it comes to advertising attention, TV also surpasses YouTube. The video attention ratio (Video Attention Ratio or VAR) is 80% for linear television and 76% for BVOD, compared to 55% for video platforms and only 34% for social networks. These results reflect the impact of premium, well-produced television content, which further captivates audiences, regardless of the medium used, whether television screen, computer or mobile.
Transparency of measurements
SNPTV also highlights the differences in audience measurement methods. While television data is produced by independent third parties such as Médiamétrie, audited by the CESP, the measurements provided by YouTube come directly from the platform, which raises questions about their reliability and independence.
Finally, the union recalls that the quality of the advertising experience remains incomparable on television channels. These invest massively in professional and premium content, offer careful distribution environments and guarantee total security for brands, with communication within strictly brand safe frameworks.
Faced with these significant discrepancies, SNPTV calls for careful interpretation of the data and reaffirms the importance of independent and transparent audience measurement for all market players. For the union, television remains the benchmark media, both for its advertising impact and for its contribution to the economy and the production of quality content.
SNPTV, chaired by François Pellissier, DGA business and sport of the TF1 group, brings together 8 agencies: TF1 Pub, M6 Publicité, FranceTV Publicité, Canal+ Brand Solutions, RMC BFM Ads, Amaury Media, BeIn Régie and Paramount.
