Counterpoints to Marketing Article

 
New Nielsen Study Released on TV and Online Viewing
Marketing | June 16, 2011 - article

Statements:

"Americans who watch the most video online tend to watch less TV, according to The Nielsen Co., a finding that overturns a long-standing belief that people who watch more programming do so over all devices."

"[Nielsen] noticed a segment of consumers who were starting to make a trade-off between online video and regular TV."

"The finding could be troubling to television networks that have been putting shows online in order to reach new audiences. The hope was they wouldn't diminish viewership on television."

"...the study suggests that advertisers have to cast a wider net to make sure they're reaching the audiences they want."

Counterpoints:

1. People are not moving away from television. Nielsen divided users who said they watched videos online into fifths, based on how much they watched (more that a third of TV/internet population don't stream any video at all). The fifth that watched the most video online watched just 18 minutes a day less television than those who watched nearly no online video, a number that is hardly newsworthy given that regular television viewing was four hours and 32 minutes a day for the "heavy" users of online video vs. four hours and 50 minutes for the "lightest" of online video users.
    
2. The 18 minutes spent with online video represents just 6.6% of their total television time.
    
3. The study also does not distinguish what type of content is being viewed or if it is mutually exclusive from television. Online video viewers are likely multitasking, which one-third of U.S. viewers do (article).  There are many other types of online video content to look at - music videos, news clips, facebook videos, etc. Online video content being watched is likely not competing with television anyway.
    
4. According to the article, despite growing use online video overall television usage continues to grow, rising 22 minutes from a year ago to 158 hours and 47 minutes a month. Watching video on the internet rose to four hours and 33 minutes per month, which represents a mere 2.8% of television time.
    
   • "The resounding trend is this: Americans are spending more time watching video content on traditional TV, mobile devices and via the internet than ever before" - Nielsen
      
5. Even in the United States, where over-the-top content providers have a stronger foothold than in Canada, those services remain complimentary to traditional broadcast television and are not a replacement. Just 0.13% of all the TV that Americans watch is from over-the-top services. - Deloitte
    
6. The latest Canadian MTM study indicates that internet TV is not a threat, but a complement to broadcast TV (article). The Council for Research Excellence also reiterates this fact finding that screen choice is driven by both best screen available and best function available - the bigger screen is not necessarily the 'best' screen and multi-screen use is clearly complementary rather than cannibalistic. (article)
    
7. The rise of Social TV is making television stronger. "We are seeing social media working in concert with TV, it's the two-screen experience. People are sitting there with their tablet or smart phone in one hand and they are watching TV at the same time. We are seeing the re-linearization of television," says Duncan Stewart, director of research technology, media and telecommunications with Deloitte Canada. (article)
    
8. The Nielsen study is a self-report poll of 2,600 people. Participants in polls such as these tend to underestimate the amount of TV time they actually spend. In Canada, A18+ spend 30.3 hours with TV per week, A18-34 watch 23 hours. (PPM audience data)
    
9. The 2011 Attitudes Survey conducted by BBM Analytics in May 2011 found that television is the most influential, persuasive, effective, and powerful advertising medium, outperforming all other media.
    
10. The June 2010 Ad Receptivity Survey conducted by BBM Analytics confirms that people are more receptive and attentive to television advertising above all other media. The survey further found that 56.9% of adults 18+ said that they are most likely to notice ads on television, compared to just 15.2% for internet.