As a fan of the TV show Criminal Minds I care about the ratings the show gets as it is a key factor in its renewal for a 7 season. So every Thursday morning I go to three different sites to see how CM did ratings wise, the previous night. Every Thursdat morning Mediaweek and TVbyTheNumbers will post a series of numbers; first the overnight broadcast. Those are the live + same day DVR viewing. Those numbers are partial as they do not have the final numbers. The final numbers are usually the ratings of the West Coast viewership and adjustment due to overrun or special/sporting events. Those final numbers are posted later in the afternoon and used to be the ratings a show success was measured by.
Then enter the DVR and delay viewing and all Hell broke lose for Broadcaster and cable networks!
Now a big part of the audience, 38% as of the start of the 2010 TV season, uses a DVR. For those people who have a DVR, they no longer have to watch a TV show live. They can watch it whenever they want. For the TV viewer this is great! Finally freedom to watch what we want when we want! Added bonus, that nice option that all DVR have, skipping commercials. This would almost be TV heaven for all viewers, the only thing missing is REALLY to have a one hour show instead of the 42 minutes we get for a one our scripted show.
Big problem with DVR is that advertisers, those who pay a big part of a TV show budget, do not want the TV viewers to watch their new ads campaign for the deal of the year on the new GM model....a month after the deal is over! Advertisers pay good money for a 30 seconds spot on let’s say Glee so they could reach the young, unsavy, trend slave, buyers. They want to do this while the trendy stuff they want to sell is still trendy! If you watch Glee on the weekend then you will not have seen the ads for the new teen movies that were opening on Friday night. In advertising, it is all about timing. Advertisers pay for your time when they want it not when you are willing to give it to them.
So you can see why, according to the advertisers, the DVR is the instrument by which the end of the (advertising) world will come. At least on TV!
To go back to ratings, when it is reported that Criminal Minds Season 6 opener had; 14.166 million viewers and demo 18-49: 4.0. We had to wait for the numbers for the Live + 7 days DVR viewing and that gave us the real audience for Criminal Minds which was really: 16.60m and a demo of 5.0 and A25-54 (this age demo is very important to CBS as it is their main target audience) 6.3 (source: CMRT ). As you can see, CM and almost all shows except reality TV and sporting events, all have bumps in the ratings when we add those who watch via DVR.
So, you might think, what is the problem with DVR? So what if I miss some ads? The problem that both Broadcasters and cable Networks have is that advertisers will not pay for ads time after live+3 days DVR viewing( known in the industry as the C3). That mean if some of you were counting on DVR viewing to save Fringe or Lie To Me, think again.
At the moment, Broadcasters are trying to force the advertisers to par for 7 days DVR viewing. At the rate DVR usage is growing, at least 5% a year, then by 2013 DVR will be used by more than 50% of all households. By then, the advertisers will have to think of new ways to advertise of TV shows.
Which bring me to this,anyone notice that The BAU team now uses iPads?
Related posts/article to read on the subject;
CBS David Poltrack
Travis Yanan
Week One Top 25 shows that were the most recorded (DVR +7 days viewing)
L.A Time
TVbyTheNumbers ( read all the comments to know how TV viewers and those in advertising and TV business are so not understanding each others)
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