LOS ANGELES: The use of internet-ready
devices like smartphones appears to have
seriously cut into the time Americans spend
watching traditional TV, new Nielsen data
show, potentially undermining the notion
that mobile devices merely serve as second
screens'' while people are plopped in front of
the set.
. . Data provided to The Associated Press show
an increase in the number of 18-to-34-year-
olds who used a smartphone, tablet or TV-
connected device like a streaming box or
game console. That grew 26% in May
compared with a year earlier, to an average
of 8.5 million people per minute.
. . Those devices, which all showed gains in
usage, more than offset declines in
traditional TV, radio and computers. In the
same age group, the demographic most
highly coveted by advertisers, use of those
devices fell 8% over the same period to a
combined 16.6 million people per minute.
. . It's not a one-to-one tradeoff, though.
Sometimes people are using smartphones
while watching TV, or using them outside the
home where it wouldn't cut into TV time. In
addition, some mobile device use is, well, to
watch TV shows.
. . Nielsen's inaugural "Comparable Metrics''
report for the first time presents data on
average use per minute, making it possible to
directly compare various devices. The study
counts all apps, web surfing and game play
but not texts or calling.
. . The results confirm a trend in other Nielsen
data that found viewing of traditional TV --
through a cable or satellite connection or an
antenna -- peaked in the 2009-10 season.
. . "It's pretty clear the increased use of mobile
devices is having some effect on the system
as a whole,'' said Glenn Enoch, Nielsen's
senior vice president of audience insights.
. . The audience for TV viewing alone fell by
10%, to 8.4 million people a minute, in the
18-to-34-year-old category.
. . The new Nielsen data also looks at time spent
watching video on various devices, but not
for TV-connected devices, where users were
clocked playing games as well.
. . However, even excluding TV-connected
devices, the shift in video watching away
from the TV is pronounced.
. . For the young group, viewing on TVs fell 10
minutes to an average of 5 hours and 43
minutes a day. That's more than
compensated for the 33-minute gain in
viewing video on computers, smartphones
and tablets, which rose to 3 hours and 43
minutes.
. . Since Nielsen inaugurated its tracking service
in 1949, average daily TV viewing has grown
steadily, from 4 hours and 35 minutes a day
to a peak of 8 hours and 55 minutes in
2009-10. That increase coincided with
growing numbers of TV sets sold and the
proliferation of programming on cable
channels.
. . But viewership has been declining ever since.
From late September until mid-November
this year, daily TV watching accounted for
only 8 hours and 13 minutes, Nielsen said.
Source: http://m.timesofindia.com/tech/comp...e-eating-our-TV-time/articleshow/50054719.cms
