Younger Viewers Bring New Approaches to Primetime TV Viewing - More Likely to Use DVRs, Watch Outside Home

Younger Viewers Bring New Approaches to Primetime TV Viewing - More Likely to Use DVRs, Watch Outside Home

New Knowledge Networks report shows similarities, changes compared to 2004; reveals how sexes, races, generations differ in their primetime viewing habits

MENLO PARK, Calif., Oct. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Although overall time spent watching television in primetime has changed remarkably little in the past four years, the specifics of how, what -- and even where -- that viewing happens are being transformed, according to a new report from Knowledge Networks. These changes in the primetime experience are being driven in part by the very different habits of Generation X, Millennials, and Young Baby Boomers

Examples of primetime viewing changes, 2004 vs. 2008:
TV users, ages 18-49, 10PM to 11PM ET/PT (9PM to 10PM CT/MT)

2004 2008
Watched TV out of own home 7% 4%
Watched TV alone 45% 52%
Used DVR to watch show 2% 8%
Multitasking while watching 65% 56%

According to How People Use(R) Primetime TV -- produced as part of KN's The Home Technology Monitor(TM) -- the proportion of people "typically watching TV" in a given hour between 8 PM and midnight has remained stable -- with shifts of 0 to 2 percentage points in each hour -- since 2004, when KN produced its last report on primetime television viewing.

But there are signs that a more purposeful approach to viewing is being abetted by technologies such as DVRs and the ability to have a TV set to oneself. The report shows that:

-- the proportion of those who report recording primetime shows has jumped by over 40 percent, from 27% in 2004 to 38% now

-- 48% of viewers now say that "most of the time" they turn on the TV in primetime "with the intent to watch a particular show," compared to 41% in 2004

-- Reported switching in each hour decreased between four and eight percentage points in 2008 compared with 2004

Looking at the habits of different age groups, the report shows that Millennials (ages 13 to 29) are:

-- 50% more likely than Young Boomers to say they "switch around" during primetime commercial or program breaks (63% for Millennials, 42% for Young Boomers)

-- more than three times as likely to watch primetime TV out of their own home at least once a week (39%, versus 11% of Young Boomers)

-- substantially more likely to say they watched primetime TV with others in the room (55% for Millennials, versus 41% for Young Boomers)

Examples of primetime viewing habits by age group, 2008

Millennials Gen X Young Boomers
Usually switch around
during primetime commercial
or program breaks 63% 53% 42%
Watch TV out of own home
once a week 39% 21% 11%
Watch TV with others in the room 55% 53% 41%

"Primetime represents an important block of time when people want to be entertained and informed," said David Tice, Vice President and director of The Home Technology Monitor(TM). "It is becoming less about the shows' or TV networks' schedules; more and more consumers can find what interests them and watch it when they find time. The more flexibility that media companies offer consumers for watching on their own terms, in their "personal primetime," the more viewing hours they will capture."

How People Use(R) Primetime TV also provides in-depth information on:

-- attitudes towards primetime advertising -- perceived relevance, usefulness, and quality

-- differences in TV use and viewing habits between the four separate hours of primetime (8PM to Midnight ET/PT, 7PM to 11PM CT/MT)

-- recording of primetime shows -- with a DVR, VCR, or other device -- and when those recordings are likely to be viewed

-- activities accompanying and/or replacing primetime viewing for each hour of primetime, including use of iPods and watching of streaming or cell phone video

-- viewing of high-definition programming

The report also includes a section that compares primetime viewing in 1994, 2004, and 2008.

The Home Technology Monitor(TM) provides the most authoritative information on the media technologies consumers have access to -- from cellular phones with video service to digital video recorders; its reports draw on trend data from 1981 to the present, as well as KN's trademarked How People Use(R) approach to studying consumers' interactions with media. Its newest report is an annual overview of Ownership and Trends in media technology; to produce the study, KN conducted 2,636 in-depth interviews with a representative sample of households nationwide.

Knowledge Networks specializes in solving complex, high-impact problems, providing extraordinary quality and service to leaders in business, government and academia. We work closely with clients to create healthy consumer-brand connections, effective marketing and advertising, sound public policies, and accurate social science research. We have established respected practices in media, marketing, advertising, and government & academic studies. KN excels in study design, analytics, and custom panel creation; we deliver affordable, statistically valid online research through KnowledgePanel(R) -- the only available probability selected, nationally representative Internet panel.

For more information contact David Stanton (Vice President, Marketing

Communications) at dstanton@knowledgenetworks.com or (908) 497-8040.

Source: Knowledge Networks

CONTACT: David Stanton, Vice President, Marketing Communications of
Knowledge Networks, +1-908-497-8040, dstanton@knowledgenetworks.com

Web site: http://www.knowledgenetworks.com/

-------
Profile: intent