How watch time is measured
The player sends a heartbeat at regular intervals while video is playing. Adding the intervals gives time watched. Paused, buffering and background time are excluded, and the total can be broken down by title, viewer, device, plan and day.
Related measures
- Watch time per viewer: total hours divided by active viewers
- Average view duration: watch time for a title divided by the number of plays
- Completion rate: the share of plays that reach the end
- Session length: time watched in one sitting
Why watch time matters
- Retention: subscribers who watch more are less likely to cancel
- Advertising: ad impressions are watch hours multiplied by ads per hour and fill rate
- Cost: delivery volume is watch hours multiplied by average bitrate
- Programming: hours per title show what the audience values, beyond how many people clicked
- Licensing: revenue is often shared between rights holders in proportion to hours watched
Reading it carefully
Total watch time rises simply because the audience grew. Per-viewer figures show whether the service is becoming more or less engaging. A long title naturally collects more hours than a short one, so compare titles on completion as well.
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