Tivo Data Shows Viewers Don't Skip Relevant Ads

Digital video recorder (DVR) firm Tivo has released the first data from its second-by-second audience measurement service Power||Watch, which indicates that while all viewers are fast-forwarding ads at high rates, specific commercials skipped vary by segment.

The service was launched last November to help companies measure which TV viewers skip over commercials. It collects program and commercial ratings data for 20,000 US households who have volunteered to take part in a 'passive' consumer panel, and this is segmented by standard household demographics such as income, geography, ethnicity, number of children and tenure of TiVo subscriber.

Research for the broadcast month of May 2008 highlights that while all the demographic segments Timeshift (record for viewing at a later date) and fast-forward commercials at a high rate, the specific commercials viewers choose to skip varies. For example, there are significant variances in the amount of time households with children under 12 spent watching commercials for certain product categories during Timeshifted viewing compared with households with adults over 50.

Power||Watch is a companion tool to the Stop||Watch(TM) ratings service, which compiles second-by-second behavioral and viewership data from a separate anonymous sample of 20,000 TiVo units.

'For the past year and a half, the Stop||Watch ratings service has helped the industry better understand how DVRs are impacting viewing behavior,' commented Todd Juenger, VP & General Manager, TiVo Audience Research & Measurement. 'The Power||Watch service uncovers who is watching or fast-forwarding what commercials and how it relates to household demographics.'

Media agency Starcom was the first to sign up for the Stop||Watch service, and the firm's SVP/Video Innovation Director Tracey Scheppach says that the new insights available through Power||Watch were 'unimaginable' only a few years ago. 'The ratings service will enable us to more accurately measure viewer behavior by specific demographic segments, which in turn can help us adjust our strategy and maximize return for our clients,' she added.

TiVo is based in Alviso, California and is online at www.tivo.com .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.