13 percent of Americans watch TV or movies while at work

By Mike Flacy September 8, 2011

watching-tv-at-work — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Adapted into an infographic and published this week by Wistia, data from a study of over 2,500 people by a company called Qumu showed that 64 percent of Americans used the workplace to watch online video. Over half of men have admitted to this constant practice while only about 1 in 3 women spend work hours perusing Web video. News clips comprised the largest majority of web video watched at 25 percent with workplace videos coming in at 17 percent. Viral video on YouTube and other popular video hosting sites clocked in at 15 percent and social media video comprised 12 percent of videos watched. Sports was popular at 11 percent and television shows made up 9 percent. Feature-length films were watched by four percent, slightly beating out pornography at three percent.

The 63 percent of people that attempted to hide online video from an employer most commonly hide a mobile device playing the video underneath a table or desk. Forty-two percent of the survey takers take a bathroom break to watch video and 35 percent of employees attempt to hide the smartphone or tablet in folders. The most desperate pretend to tie their shoes to continue watching video while 8 percent of the respondents actually attempt to cause a distraction. While 90 seconds of online video is approximately 700 times larger than a typical email, only 9 percent of employees understand that online video is taxing on the speed and bandwidth of a wireless network.

Beyond online video, nearly 75 percent of Americans utilize smartphones at work for tasks that aren’t work related. The most common task is searching for a more attractive primary job. Other popular tasks include visiting online dating websites, seeking part time work, researching a medical problem, shopping for private items like lingerie or underwear and looking into popular plastic surgery options. In addition, 63 percent of Americans use a smartphone to participate in these tasks during work-related meetings. Check out the infographic below for more information:

what-kind-of-videos-watched-at-work — Image used with permission by copyright holder

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