Who will take care of the basic needs? Elderly people fall into the "digital divide" while watching TV. Cable TV | TV | basic needs
With the development of technology, life should have become more and more convenient, but for some elderly people, watching TV has become increasingly difficult - there are many startup steps, the remote control buttons are messy, and the interface design is difficult to recognize. If you want to watch a certain TV channel, you can't find it.
Why is it so difficult for elderly people to watch TV, and why are their simple needs ignored? Zhu Guang, a representative of the Municipal People's Congress, believes that in the era of intelligence, we should not only focus on the competition of upgrading and iteration, but also consider the "bottom line" needs of the elderly to watch TV. He suggests adding "aging friendly packages" in digital TV to bridge this digital divide.
Recently, this suggestion received the latest response from the handling department, and the relevant companies responded that they will launch special aging friendly services such as remote control "one click direct access" function for the elderly. Will these measures help the elderly achieve "freedom to watch TV"?
The complex operation has stumped the elderly
Many people's televisions become bigger and more flashy as they are replaced, but the operation becomes more cumbersome, and many elderly people have no way to start
"My parents wanted to watch the Spring Festival Gala, but when they turned on the TV, they couldn't even find a set on CCTV. In the end, I downloaded the app and let my parents watch the Gala through CCTV." Zhu Guang believes that his experience is not an isolated case. Many people's televisions get bigger and bigger, and they become more flashy, but the operation is also more cumbersome, making it difficult for many elderly people to get started and requiring their children's help.
At the beginning of this year, Grandma Zhang's daughter replaced her family with a high-definition smart TV. Faced with complex remote control buttons, Grandma Zhang couldn't handle it at all. My daughter patiently demonstrated the operation steps several times, but Grandma Zhang couldn't remember them. She took a pen and wrote down one by one, "There are two remote controls, press this one first, then press that one, and then press which one on the startup interface. All of them need to be marked before I can sit down and watch TV." Nevertheless, if I press the wrong key and can't return to the homepage, Grandma Zhang still needs to call her daughter for help.
Xiaoyu often helps her grandfather debug TV programs. She thought that switching the TV to the "senior version" would make the interface cleaner, but she didn't expect the font to be slightly larger after switching. "There are still a lot of irrelevant functions, and the paid items are placed higher, while the TV viewing options are located lower, which makes it difficult for the elderly to choose.".
Xiao Sun, who works in a foreign company, said that his parents have a simple wish: to be able to watch live broadcasts, with both central and local channels, clear and stable visuals, large enough characters, and as few corners as possible. But now when watching TV, you first need to watch the startup advertisement, then select live streaming from the dense options, and click on it to see the advertisement. Compared to other elderly people, her mother in her 70s is a digital expert, and the complex buttons on the set-top box are not difficult for her. Once, an elderly person was eager to watch a newly broadcasted opera, but didn't want to watch too long an advertisement, so they swiped a QR code to pay the fee. Unexpectedly, this recharge automatically registered as a member, with monthly scheduled deductions. Finally, with the help of my daughter, I withdrew from membership mode.
Ms. Zhang, a customer service representative of Shanghai Telecom, told reporters that she would receive some questions and complaint calls about digital television at work. "The other party is mostly elderly people, either complaining about too many advertisements or encountering difficulties to inquire about how to use the buttons."
According to the 2022 China Aging TV Research Report, nearly 50% of elderly people cannot find the TV programs they want to watch. 1191 respondents aged 50 and above ranked in the top three in terms of "difficulties encountered during normal use of smart TVs": "inability to directly access the TV programs they want to watch after turning on", "not knowing how to switch between multiple devices", and "complex operation and not knowing how to find the content they want to watch"; On the question of "how to solve difficulties in general", 40.3% of respondents chose to "ask their children", and up to 27.2% of respondents chose to "give up directly and not look anymore.".
The reporter found that due to obstacles to smart TVs, some elderly people insist on watching older TVs. Grandpa Xu, who is 83 years old, lives with his wife. What he has at home is an old TV set that has been in use for 7 years, installed with a cable TV set-top box, and can only watch live channels. "The TV is not connected to the internet, and the remote control buttons are relatively simple." However, Grandpa Xu felt that there were still too many startup advertisements.
Operators consider the interests of sponsors
While providing rich content, cable TV should also have simple entrances and provide basic viewing maintenance for central and local stations
Why has the simple operation of switching channels, which used to only require a few buttons, become increasingly complex?
The investigation by reporters found that most households have upgraded their TVs to smart TVs. The factory settings of these TVs are usually bound to various application software, and the application software bound to different brands varies, with different operations and steps. The layout settings often change, and young people still need to study it, not to mention the elderly.
"If the elderly themselves are not very good at using smartphones, then they also have no way to start with smart TVs," Ms. Zhang said. The smart TV platform is not a content oriented system UI, but a desktop UI that blends news, advertisements, games, and various short video push notifications. The content applications that users like may be hidden in second or even third level pages, and many cannot be customized on the desktop like the phone drawer mode. For the elderly, this is a high threshold for use.
If an elderly person wants to watch CCTV or local channels from a smart TV, there are many and complex steps. Due to the separation of smart TV and set-top box, a TV with dual systems and dual remote controls is rarely able to switch freely for elderly people facing dual remote controls. The reporter taught Grandma Xu, who is 75 years old, how to use a smart TV. The CCTV news channel she wants to watch is "very hidden". When she picked up the remote control, the first thing she showed was the membership mode. Grandma Xu is not interested in paid programs. She wants to watch CCTV programs and needs to download the CCTV App, which is too difficult for her. Even if she downloads it well, she still needs to register an account. For Grandma Xu, every step is a breakthrough from 0 to 1.
The reporter learned that cable TV is currently undergoing transformation and is moving towards the direction of "cable+5G" integration and innovation, that is, exploring the technological upgrade path of freely switching between large and small screens. That is to say, cable TV has become like smart TV, capable of forming two legs for both large and small screens, which means that the operation of set-top box remote controls has become more complex.
The reporter found through actual testing that watching cable TV requires two remote controls, one for turning on and the other for options. The operation of set-top box devices is not much simpler than that of smart TVs. After entering the network settings interface of the set-top box, the user needs to choose a wired or wireless network. If it is a wired network, the grid cable should be plugged in properly; If it is a wireless network, you need to enter the correct wireless password. Many elderly people rely on their children to help set up password accounts, and after setting the password, the operation is also very complicated because there are too many options, such as high-definition news channels, on-demand programs, watching programs, TV shopping, etc. Almost every option page will pop up advertisements. If the elderly cannot distinguish and mistakenly enter paid on-demand programs, it is easy to be "paid".
A telecommunications official admitted that operators pay more attention to the interests of advertising sponsors and do not set the interface from the user's perspective. Therefore, when the TV is turned on, there are advertisements, and when the set-top box is turned on, it will automatically jump to the TV shopping channel to watch advertisements.
"Market oriented enterprises are more profit oriented, which is also in line with the business logic of market competition. However, a broadcasting and television system that integrates free channel resources should take on social responsibility and consider the basic needs of the elderly to watch TV." Zhu Guang suggests that while providing more rich content, cable TV should set up a simple entrance to provide basic viewing maintenance services such as free channels such as CCTV and local channels, and be in a prominent position, so that elderly viewers can "see it at a glance" and "find it with one click.".
Push the remote control for one click direct access function
In the process of digital transformation, can cable TV also cooperate with market enterprises to provide simple entry points for smart TV
In the information age, how to prevent the elderly from falling into the "digital divide" while watching TV?
It is reported that the basic viewing and maintenance fees for cable digital television for residential users in Shanghai are charged per household, with a fee standard of 23 yuan per household per month. Other business services are subject to market adjustment pricing, such as personalized value-added services such as paid programs, on-demand programs, and information services provided by cable digital TV operators, as well as satellite TV and network TV services, which are determined by the operators themselves.
"Television screens are the main battlefield for the Party and the state's public opinion propaganda, as well as an important channel to enrich the entertainment life of the people." The organizing department, the Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism, admitted that it should promote the improvement of "aging friendly" service levels in broadcasting and television, and actively explore the combination of the broadcasting and television industry with the development of the elderly cause. The bureau stated that the next step will be to launch an upgrade of cable television services, with the focus on improving the level of television services in terms of "aging friendly" functionality and accessibility service adaptation.
The reporter learned that relevant operators are already creating more simplified and convenient TV services. As a cable TV operator in Shanghai, Oriental Cable launched a cable TV service upgrade campaign in March this year, launching a series of upgrade measures such as age friendly and barrier free services, concise membership system, and product innovation. For example, in terms of upgrading the "age friendly" function, Oriental Cable has launched a remote control "one click direct channel" function. After turning on the cable TV high-definition set-top box, users only need to press the "Guide" or "TV" button to enter the last channel they watched.
Dongfang Cable also launched a 7 × 24-hour button free manual service hotline for users aged 65 and above. Simply call the official customer service hotline 96877 to directly connect to the manual customer service, and customer service personnel can communicate with the elderly in Shanghai. Dongfang Cable also stated that it will launch voice remote controllers in the market this year to achieve language interactive remote control, making it convenient for the elderly to operate.
Television has a simple and operable entrance, and can also become a service platform for the elderly. During the interview, many citizens and representatives suggested not only providing basic viewing maintenance services such as free channels, but also hoping to launch other business services that are of interest to elderly audiences. It is reported that SMG's Baishitong has deep cooperation with the Municipal Civil Affairs Bureau, Municipal Health Commission, Municipal Aging Commission and other departments, relying on IPTV screens to provide comprehensive services such as smart healthcare and civil affairs assistance for the elderly, and to create home-based medical services for the elderly. At present, the "Smart Life" section of the IPTV Sunshine Leling Elderly Edition has opened an online follow-up function, connecting to well-known hospitals such as Huashan Hospital, First People's Hospital, and Tenth People's Hospital. In response to the problem of "difficulty in taking a taxi" reported by the elderly, Baishitong has launched the country's first family large screen digital travel service product "TV Smart Travel", covering nearly 5 million users of Shanghai IPTV and Oriental Cable Digital TV, focusing on three types of travel services: taxi, bus, and subway. In the scene of elderly people watching TV, they can call a taxi at any time with just one click through the remote control.
"The applications of 'Smart Life' and 'TV Smart Travel' are very good, but the prerequisite is that the elderly can watch and use TV freely and conveniently." Zhu Guang believes that simplified operational applications such as' One click Direct Channel 'can effectively reduce the threshold for the elderly to use cable TV. However, she also admits that in the vast TV operation market, users covered by Eastern Cable and others are only a small part. In the process of digital transformation, can cable TV also cooperate with market enterprises to provide simple entry points for smart TV, allowing more enterprises to study user habits and strategies in the elderly segmentation field together.
Journalist's Notes
Who will take care of the underlying needs
Wang Haiyan
I don't know when TV has become a "gold sucking" TV, and various companies want to get a share of the pie from this entrance. Everyone is trying to extend video, gaming, social and other applications on TV platforms, with the intention of finding ways to extend its ecosystem to your living room.
The living room is another Internet battlefield after PC Internet and mobile Internet. Because the large screen provides a better user experience and comes with a stronger demand for payment. When enterprises seize the "living room", they are planning for the layout of "home Internet". Faced with this trend, not only market oriented enterprises are using their brains, but broadcasting and television enterprises are also rubbing their hands.
In the world of competition and upgrading, although the elderly are a loyal group in the "living room", due to their low willingness to pay and only wanting to watch free news channels, they are obviously not the target users that the market wants to compete for, so companies naturally have little motivation to pay attention to the needs of this group.
Compared to young and middle-aged people, the elderly are the most loyal fans of television. This is a life and entertainment scene that they have been familiar with since childhood. Their purpose of turning on the TV is very simple, there are not so many flashy hobbies, they don't want to pursue dramas, TV shopping, or play computer games. Some elderly people will use paper and notes to record the order of each live broadcast channel, while others will patiently add a layer of handmade protective cover to the remote control. But they didn't expect that the TV they could easily control in the past has now become the electronic monster that controls them.
At present, there is a discussion about the "digital divide", and the scene of watching TV is also a gap. Compared to the needs of seeking medical treatment, taking a taxi, etc., the demand for elderly people to watch TV is not so urgent, and we cannot expect technological upgrades to actively cater to their TV watching habits. However, a broadcasting and television system that integrates resources from various news channels should cater to the basic needs of the elderly, providing them with a simple entrance option for those who have paid basic viewing fees.
In the current era of digital transformation, traditional broadcasting and telecommunications services are entering a cross-border integration era. Cable+5G brings many possibilities for the integration and innovation of broadcasting and television, and cable TV is opening up the technological leap path of switching between large and small screens. In this context, the basic needs of the elderly should be given more attention, because if even cable TV is ignored and marginalized, this digital divide will become increasingly large.
From a different perspective, elderly users are not just insulators in the television market. Everyone is talking about the "silver economy" and "elderly industry". As a large group of elderly people, it is also a potential low profit market. If we truly create a simple and useful TV application for them, even if we need to open up membership, the elderly are probably willing to pay for it. At present, some companies have begun to pay attention to the value of the elderly and research the TV remote control model for the elderly. However, to ensure that the central and local channels that the elderly want to watch can also be included, it is not just market oriented enterprises that can complete it themselves. Cooperation and connectivity are needed.
In the era of intelligence, only truly humanization can be called intelligence. If we truly consider various consumers, including the elderly, and integrate them into product design, we can make digital life more popular and enable the elderly to enjoy the convenience brought by digital life.
