TV Dominates Among Three Screens

(Feb. 27, 2009) NEW YORK: People continue to watch more video content across TV, Internet and on mobile devices--but mostly on TV, according to Nielsen. The TV metric taker’s 4Q08 Three Screen Report found that the “average American” watched more than 151 hours of TV per month, an all-time high. The average for 4Q07 was nearly 146 hours.

Time-shifted TV viewing reached an average of 7 hours, 11 minutes per month in the quarter, up from 5:24 the previous year. People watched about 2 hours, 53 minutes of video on the ’Net and 3 hours, 42 minutes on a mobile devices. No previous year figures were available.

“It is clear that TV remains the main vehicle for viewing video, although online and mobile platforms are an increasingly important complement to live home-based television,” said Susan Whiting, vice chair of Nielsen.

The report also notes that with the exception of the teen years, viewing of traditional television increases with age. Teens consume the most mobile video, and Internet video use peaks at the young adult stage. More males than females watch mobile video, and more women watch video on the Internet and TV than men. Internet video usage is also highest during weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.