Ukraine saw a 35% increase in TV viewership during the coronavirus lockdown.
Furthermore, according to a market summary provided at the start of Kyiv Media Week – Global Marathon, although the ad market was initially hit by the pandemic, it has started to recover since July.
In 2019, TV ad spend in the country amounted to $252 million, or 48% of the total.
In the TV sector, trends include the reduction of Russian content, replaced by that from Ukraine and other countries. Meanwhile, TV shows are the most popular genre, accounting for 36% of broadcast content.
Ukrainian content is also gaining popularity abroad and formats travelling worldwide.
In Ukraine itself, the four main media groups operate a total of over 25 channels and the leading TV channels in the country have over 20 million viewers.
In a market where on demand is growing, 32.5% of viewers now watch AVOD services.
In a panel discussion following the market summary, Oleksandr Tkachenko, the minister of culture and information policy, said that the Ukrainian parliament will this week discuss the lowering of VAT from 20% to 7% in several sectors.
He also spoke of the importance of protecting jobs during this time of the crisis.