TiVo-ers watch ads after all
When digital video recorders gained popularity in the consumer market, advertisers were in a panic. Some folks predicted the death of TV as we know it. Turns out, we're still watching the commercials.
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BOB MOON: One of the great things about having a digital video recorder is being able to skip over the commercials, right?
Well, that’s what advertisers have been worried about — but maybe they don’t need to worry so much.
New Nielsen data shows DVR owners, on average, actually go ahead and watch a third of the ads.
When you get into the specifics, it does make some sense:
TiVo has found that the most-viewed commercial is the last one just before the program resumes and the first one in the break also tends to get watched.
Some of the reasons why people are watching ads: They still watch a lot of shows in real time, they actually like the ads, or, in true couch-potato fashion, they just can’t be bothered to grab the remote and push the fast forward button.