It might sound contradictory, but CBS Research has found that individuals who are heavily involved in using digital media are also more likely to watch primetime television. Dave Poltrack, the network’s Chief Research Officer, and President of CBS Vision, its media lab, explains the seeming disconnect this way: By offering new ways to watch TV shows – through websites, podcasts, ringtones or other mobile features – viewers’ appetites are whetted for the programs and are more inclined to tune in during regular first-run airtimes.
Among the findings:
—56 percent of those surveyed were aware that you could watch network television programs by streaming them over the Internet. Of those aware of this streaming option, 46 percent have already streamed at least one program. The majority of those who didn’t know said they probably would watch at least one show that way in the future.
—the segment of the population with both a broadband and a digital television connection at home has grown from 22 percent in the fall of 2005 to over 30 percent this fall.
The study, timed to be released with the start of the Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas, was based on interviews with 50 focus groups conducted over the past three years and involving nearly 600 people from 33 states. Release.
Related:
—CBS Launches New Research Division; Studying Digital Media