• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, June 2, 2006

One in seven consumers appear to be willing to accept embedded ads in digital downloads of TV shows, provided that the downloads are free, according to a new report by Ipsos Insight.

For the report, "More Evolution Than Revolution: Most Consumers Ambivalent About Emerging Digital Video Choices," Ipsos surveyed 1,063 U.S. online adults in April.

Thirteen percent of respondents forecast that one year from now, they will "seriously consider" downloading podcasts of TV shows with ads that couldn't be skipped over. About the same proportion--11 percent--predicted that they will seriously consider paying $1.99 per show to download a TV show that they could then copy three times to devices like DVDs or video iPods. Ten percent said they will seriously consider a similar deal for movies ($9.99 for three copies).

When asked whether they would seriously consider renting movies (at $4.99) or TV shows (99 cents) one year from now, 9 percent replied in the affirmative.

Web users also indicated that they intend to continue consumption of media through traditional means. Eighteen percent of respondents said they expect to watch TV in real time more often next year, compared to 13 percent who said they expected to watch TiVo-ed or recorded programs more often and 6 percent who anticipate viewing more TV online.

The responses show that while consumers are starting to embrace digital media, they're not ready to cast off traditional delivery systems, said Todd Board, Ipsos Insight's senior vice president for technology and communications. "People are not highly interested in jettisoning or dumping a current way of consuming, accessing, or storing media."