• by Joe Mandese  @mp_joemandese, November 12, 2009

U.S. television broadcasters may have successfully completed their transition to digital media, but TV audience researcher Nielsen Co. reminded clients that its measurement systems still have a long way to go. In what it said was its final report on the impact the federally-mandated conversion to digital broadcast spectrum had on the ability of people living in "diary" households to access digital broadcast TV, Nielsen noted that nearly a third of U.S. households still report their TV viewing via the most analog of all media: paper and pencils.

"This is the final communication in a series of updates on the digital readiness estimates for Nielsen's 151 diary-only markets, which currently represent almost one-third (30.2%) of U.S television households," Nielsen said in a communiqué sent to clients on Wednesday, adding that 1.2% of its diary households remain "completely unready" to receive broadcast TV signals following the digital transition.

That's a smidge higher than the final 1.2% count of Nielsen's metered households, and the 1.1% of total U.S. households that remains "completely unready" to receive digital broadcast TV signals, according to Nielsen's estimates.