A new study out today from Nielsen contradicts our many commenters of the “nobody under XX watches TV anymore anyway” persuasion.
Teens overall TV use has been growing slowly (up 6% in the last 5 years). But within that trend, broadcast TV use has been on the decline, and cable TV use has been on the increase. Those are the same overall trends as the entire US population.
DVR playback is growing, but is still only a very small part of overall TV use. Teen percentage of DVR playback compared to overall TV viewing is lower than for the population as a whole.
Here’s the key chart:
Key [TV] Takeaways
- Teens are NOT abandoning TV for new media: In fact, they watch more TV than ever, up 6% over the past five years in the U.S.
- Teens love the Internet … but spend far less time browsing than adults: Teens spend 11 hours and 32 minutes per month online. Far below the average of 29 hours and 15 minutes.
- Teens watch less online video than most adults, but the ads are highly engaging to them: Teens spend 35% less time watching online video than adults 25-34, but recall ads better when watching TV shows online than they do on television.
- Teens’ favorite TV shows, top websites and genre preferences across media are mostly the same as their parents: For U.S. teens, American Idol was the top show in 2008, Google the top website and general dramas are a preferred TV genre for teens around the world.
via Nielsen Wire.
I see the teen ratings regularly. While it’s true that both adults and teens watch American Idol in huge numbers, after that, the top shows are significantly different, and I think it’s odd that Nielsen would try to suggest otherwise in an attempt to push the idea that “Teens! They’re just like everyone else!”
After American Idol, the shows most popular with teens are The Secret Life of the American Teenager; a variety of sitcoms on Nickelodeon and the Disney Channel; Family Guy (both on FOX and Adult Swim); Nick-at-Nite stuff airing on nights Nickelodeon’s shows are new; wrestling. Then, yes, come shows that are popular with adults, like Grey’s Anatomy, House, and Desperate Housewives.
The third takeaway is pretty interesting. But as a teen, although I live outside the US, I can agree.
HUT/PUT?
Households Using Television (HUT): The percentage of all television households in a survey area with one or more sets in use during a specific time period. The sum of the average ratings for a given time period will sometimes be higher than the HUT number because of households viewing multiple programs at the same time. If a household is watching two programs, it is counted toward each program rating but only once toward a HUT number.
PUT is People Using Television, but the explanation is essentially the same.
In this case Nielsen’s legend is a bit opaque, and “HUT/PUT viewing source” basically = television.
Nielsen – Defending the status quo, until the status is no longer quo.
I’m only 18, just a year out of the teenage demo, but as a teen most people I knew didn’t watch too much TV, and if they did they mostly watched cable.
I was probably the only teenager that watched CBS 90% of the time.