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Tag: Harris poll

  • Youtube is affecting TV viewing in the US

    Youtube is affecting TV viewing in the US

    MUMBAI: Few vehicles are as effective at reaching large segments of the population as television, a fact that has established it as the favored medium for advertisers in many product categories. For as long as that has been the case, however, TV networks and advertisers have been fearful of emerging competitors and technologies that threaten their route into consumers’ minds.

    From the remote control to the Digital Video Recorder (DVR), there have long been predictions that live TV and its embedded advertisements were going to be adversely affected by consumers’ ability to bypass commercials. More recently, a different kind of threat has emerged from social networking video site YouTube.

    Recent research by Harris Interactive uggests that this fear may indeed be warranted. Over four in 10 (42 per cent) online US adults say they have watched a video at YouTube, and 14 per cent say they visit the site frequently. Almost one in three (32 per cent) of these frequent YouTube users say that they are watching less TV as a result of the time they spend there.

    However, YouTube has its own set of challenges as it tries to monetise the viewer traffic it has amassed. If YouTube is considering airing ads before its videos, they may be advised to halt that thinking. 73 per cent of frequent YouTube users say that they would visit the site less if it started including short video ads before every clip.

    These are just some of the results of a recent Harris Poll of 2,309 US adults (ages 18 and older), of whom 363 are frequent YouTube viewers, conducted online by Harris Interactive from 12-18 December 2006.

    Of all frequent YouTube users, two-thirds (66 per cent) claim that they are sacrificing other activities when on YouTube. Although their visits to the site are most likely to have been at the expense of visiting other websites (36 per cent), time spent watching TV is next most likely to have taken a hit (32 per cent).

    YouTube also cuts into email and other online social networking (20 per cent), work/homework (19 per cent), playing video games (15 per cent), watching DVDs (12 per cent) and even spending time with friends and family in person (12 per cent).

    Further compounding the problem for the TV and advertising, YouTube usage is greatest among the group already hardest to reach through television advertising: young males. Over three-quarters (76 per cent) of 18 to 24 year old males say they have watched a video at YouTube, and 41 per cent visit YouTube frequently.

    Harris Interactive’s Media & Entertainment Practice senior research manager Aongus Burke says, “We know from some of our other data on teens that YouTube is just as popular with them as it is with young adults. It has really emerged as a major force in, and problem for, the traditional entertainment industry. Not only is YouTube using a lot of their own content to steal the eyeballs they want the most, the site has provided a launching pad to wholly new forms of user-generated video entertainment that are gaining popularity quickly.”

    However, YouTube faces challenges of its own as it tries to cash in on the house that it has built. When asked if the inclusion of short commercials before every clip would change how often they will visit YouTube, nearly three-quarters of adults who frequently visit the site say they would visit it a lot (31 per cent) or a little (42 per cent) less often as a result.

    Burke adds, “To be fair as far as we know, YouTube has never publicly said that they are considering including short commercials before the clips on their site. However, we wanted to see how much resistance there would be at that extreme. Apparently, there is a lot.”

    Indeed, in the last year, TV networks have successfully experimented with airing of TV episodes with commercials on their websites. Nearly as many online adults (41 per cent) say they have watched a video at a TV network website as they have at YouTube (42 per cent). It seems like TV networks can get away with advertising more easily.

    Burke further says, “Indeed, we have seen in previous data that consumers as a rule are not averse to watching commercials online in order to catch an episode of a TV show they would otherwise miss. Yet those who are accustomed to finding and watching everything for free at YouTube may have developed a very different set of expectations for the site.”
     

  • Oprah is America’s favourite TV personality for fifth year in row

    Oprah is America’s favourite TV personality for fifth year in row

    MUMBAI: For the fifth year in a row, Oprah Winfrey has topped a Harris Poll in the US which asked people who their favourite television personality is.

    Jon Stewart who hosts the satirical new show The Daily Show is in second place for the second year, while Fox News anchor Bill O’Reilly moves up one notch to third place.

    Next is a newcomer to the list — Hugh Laurie whom stars in the television show House who debuts in fourth place. He won a Golden Globe for his role last week. Veteran late night talk show host David Letterman drops from number three to fifth place.

    Letterman’s arch rival, Jay Leno, is number six on the list (dropping from 2005 when he was tied for fourth place). In the Harris Poll 1,162 US adults were surveyed online from 12-18 December, 2006 by Harris Interactive.

    Besides Laurie, there are two other new TV personalities who make it into the top 10 list, one for the first time and one from previous years. Ray Romano returns at number seven while the star of 24 Kiefer Sutherland, who plays counter terrorism agent Jack Bauer makes his debut on the list, tied for eighth place. Rounding out the top 10 are Ellen DeGeneres who will host the Oscar Awards and Conan O’Brien, who are also tied for eighth place on this list.

    DeGeneres dropped from number six while O’Brien dropped from number seven. Three people dropped off the list: Jerry Seinfeld , George Lopez and comedian Tim Allen. Interestingly, the list lost three sitcom stars and gained two drama stars and one sitcom star. This might be an indication of what types of television shows viewers are watching.

    Not surprisingly, there are differences in favourite television personality when it comes to some demographic breaks. Women cite Oprah as their top television personality, but men choose O’Reilly. There are also interesting age breaks: Echo Boomers (ages 18 to 29) say that Conan O’Brien is number one. GenXers (ages 30 to 41) turn away from talk shows and say that Laurie is their favorite television personality. Baby Boomers (ages 42 to 60) say that Oprah is their favourite while Matures (ages 61 and over) say that it is O’Reilly.

    Finally, even with television stars, political boundaries are drawn. Conservatives say that O’Reilly is number one while liberals say that Stewart is their favourite.

  • Internet access at work & home increases: study

    Internet access at work & home increases: study

    MUMBAI: The number of adults who are online at home, in the office, at school, library or other locations continues to grow at a steady rate.

    In the past year, the number of online users has reached an estimated 172 million, a five per cent increase, according to the latest Harris Poll.

    In research among 2,032 US adults surveyed by telephone in February and April 2006, Harris Interactive found that 77 per cent of adults are now online, up from 74 per cent in February/April 2005, 66 per cent in the spring of 2002, 64 per cent in 2001 and 57 per cent in spring of 2000.

    When Harris Interactive first began to track Internet use in 1995, only nine per cent of adults reported they went online.

    Internet access increases at home and at work

    The proportion of adults who are now online at home has risen to 70 per cent, up from 66 per cent in 2005 and 55 per cent in the spring of 2002

    The percentage of those online at work has not really changed (35 per cent now, 36 per cent in 2005) yet is still up from 30 per cent in the spring of 2002. Adults who are online at a location other than their home or work also remains steady at 22 per cent (21 per cent in 2005, 19 per cent in the spring of 2002)
    The demographic profile of Internet users in the United States looks like the country as a whole

    As Internet penetration rises, the demographic profile of Internet users continues to look more like that of the nation as a whole. The study indicates that that more young than older people, and more affluent than low-income people, are online.

    However, eight percent of those online are now age 65 or over (compared to 16 per cent of all adults who are 65 or over), 39 per cent of those online (compared to 47 per cent of all adults) did not go to college and 14 per cent have incomes of less than $25,000 (compared to 19 per cent of all adults).