M+E Daily
Tablets Taking Time Away From TV: Nielsen
Story Highlights
U.S. consumers watched an average of 6 fewer minutes of traditional television per day in the first quarter of 2012 compared with the same period in 2011, according to the latest Nielsen Cross-Platform Report. The biggest drop-off came in live TV viewing, which fell by an average of 9 minutes per day, followed by DVR playback. Time spent viewing DVDs and streaming video via game consoles either grew or held steady.
Less viewing via traditional methods does not mean less viewing overall, however. Instead, viewing is shifting to newer, mobile platforms, particularly tablets.
According to Nielsen, “Currently more than 15 percent of US TV homes own one or more of this fast growing device category. Smartphones, with a penetration greater than that of DVRs, and gaming consoles are increasingly being used as vehicles for content delivery. Today, nearly 36 million mobile phone owners in the U.S. watch video on their phones.”
Video game consoles are also playing a major role in reshaping viewing habits among households that own game consoles capable of streaming video content — what Nielsen calls “7th generation consoles.” While the average U.S. household spends only 14 minutes a day watching video via game consoles, those with Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 consoles spend 32 minutes and 36 minutes, respectively, watching streaming video via their consoles.
The full report is available here.
