Commentary
TV's Turned On Eight Hours a Day; Average Person Watches Four and a Half Hours
- by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, October 21, 2005
Nielsen Media Research reported that the average American home watched more television the past TV season vs. any previous season. During the 2004-05 TV season (September to September), the average household in the U.S. tuned into television 8 hours and 11 minutes per day. This is 2.7% higher than the previous season, 12.5% higher than 10 years ago, and the highest levels ever reported since television viewing was first measured by Nielsen Media Research in the 1950's. In that same time frams, the average person watched television 4 hours and 32 minutes each day, the highest level in 15 years
This overall upward trend in audience increases appears to be consistent heading into the new television season, says the report. Also, the primetime viewing audience for Premiere Week (9/19 - 9/25) of the 2005-06 TV season was considerably higher than for Premiere Week 2004. And, each night of Premiere Week 2005 saw increases compared to last.
Average Hours and Minutes Tuned into TV Per 24 Hour Period (Sept-Sept) | ||
Year | Avg. Household Use | Avg. Person Time Viewing |
2004 - 2005 | 8:11 | 4:32 |
2003 - 2004 | 8:01 | 4:25 |
2002 - 2003 | 7.55 | 4.25 |
2001 - 2002 | 7.42 | 4.18 |
2000 - 2001 | 7.39 | 4.15 |
Source: Nielsen Media Research, 2005 | ||
Average Primetime TV Viewing in Hours and Minutes | ||
Year | Avg. Household Use | Avg. Person View Time |
2004 - 2005 | 1:53 | 1:11 |
2003 - 2004 | 1:52 | 1:10 |
2002 - 2003 | 1:52 | 1:10 |
2001 - 2002 | 1:51 | 1:10 |
2000 - 2001 | 1:52 | 1:10 |
Source: Nielsen Media Research, 2005 | ||
Summertime Primetime Persons and Household Tuning Levels | ||
Year | Households | Persons |
Summer 2005 June-August | 61,143 | 94,738 |
Summer 2004 June-August | 60,245 | 93,729 |
% Increase Over 2004 | +1.5% | +1.1% |
Source: Nielsen Media Research, 2005 | ||
Premiere Week Primetime Persons and Household Tuning Levels | ||
Day (9/19-9/25 2005) | Households | Persons |
Mon | 73,097 | 115,834 |
Tue | 70,980 | 111,027 |
Wed | 71,102 | 111,075 |
Thu | 70,990 | 112,293 |
Fri | 63,503 | 99,042 |
Sat | 60,640 | 95,381 |
Sun | 71,166 | 116,219 |
Total - 7 Day Average | 68,891 | 109,038 |
Total Increase Over 2004 | +4.1% | +6.3% |
Source: Nielsen Media Research, 2005 | ||
Go here for household tuning levels going back to the 1950's.
Jack Loechner is the Editor of The Center for Media Research's daily Research Brief. You can reach him at jack@mediapost.com.