Three Screens of Increased Viewing

TV, Internet, mobile: up, up, up

Americans are consuming more video content across their three screens—television, Internet and mobile—according to The Nielsen Company.

The research firm’s “A2/M2 Three Screen Report—2nd Quarter 2009” indicates the screen to gain the most US video viewers was mobile, with a 70% year-over-year increase. Traditional television viewing climbed by 0.9% between Q2 2008 and Q2 2009, while online video viewing was up significantly in June (due to changes in methodology, online figures should be used for directional purposes only). Timeshifted TV viewing was on the rise as well, with 32.2% more viewers in Q2 2009 than the prior year.

Most video viewing channels also saw quarterly gains. Traditional television, however, is subject to seasonal viewing patterns that led to a decrease from Q1 2009 to Q2 2009, despite the rise over 2008.

Americans spent significantly more time watching video content on the Internet in June 2009 than a year earlier. Average mobile viewing was down 10%, however, with mobile subscribers watching 3 hours and 15 minutes of video per month. Consumers also reported watching more than 141 monthly hours of traditional TV, and 7 hours and 16 minutes of timeshifted TV per month.

Nielsen emphasized that consumers were adding screen time, rather than simply replacing one screen with another. The report noted that 57% of Americans with Internet access at home multitasked at least monthly by using the Web and TV at the same time.

“Though this two-screen, simultaneous usage amounts to just 3% of their TV viewing, it already represents more than a quarter of their at-home internet usage (28%),” according to the report. “This simultaneous activity is one reason we see continued growth of both Internet and TV consumption.”

Another look at technological adoption and media consumption habits of Americans comes from “The State Of Consumers And Technology: Benchmark 2009, US” report from Forrester Research. According to the study, 25% of US households have a DVR, facilitating timeshifted television viewing.

Forrester also found that consumers spend an average of 8 hours per week with traditional media such as television and newspapers, and another 8 hours per week with new media, including the Internet. Despite the even split across the board, those under age 40 spend an average of about 2 hours more per week with new media than traditional.