Report: Video Viewership Shifts to DVR, Online

Written by Ryan Lawler

Wednesday, May 20. 2009 at 02:00 PM EDT 3 comments

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The good news for TV and cable programmers is that Americans are watching more video than ever. The bad news is that they're watching it when and how they want it, according to new research from The Nielsen Co.

According to Nielsen's new "Three-Screen Report," TV viewership in the U.S. reached record levels, with the average American watching about 153 hours of traditional linear TV programming every month in the first quarter of 2009. That represents an increase of about two hours and 49 minutes over the first quarter of 2008.

While Americans watched more overall TV programming, the percentage of time-shifted video that they watched increased even more dramatically. Digital video recorder (DVR) usage grew 40 percent year-over-year in the U.S., with consumers watching an average of eight hours and 13 minutes of time-shifted TV per month.

Viewers added a full two hours and 21 minutes of time-shifted TV between the first quarter of 2008 and the same quarter this year, but the shift to DVR viewing seems to be accelerating even faster over the last quarter. Viewers watched a full hour's worth of DVR content more per month between the fourth quarter of 2008 and the first quarter of this year.

Online video viewership also increased, increasing by more than 50 percent year-over-year. In the first quarter, U.S. viewers watched an average of three hours of video per month, compared to one hour and 57 minutes of online video watched each month a year ago.

Nielsen remarks that 99 percent of all video viewing still happens on the TV -- but the trend away from linear programming to time-shifted viewing as a share of video watched, along with increased takeup of online video, could mark a disturbing trend for traditional TV programmers, particularly as more and more premium long-form content finds its way online.