A study on multitasking during prime-time TV showed that during weeknight television viewing, viewers also spent an average of 9.3% of prime-time viewing minutes online, according to a study released
Monday by Integrated Media Measurement Inc.(IMMI)
The breakdown between cable and broadcast television was 8.2% and 11.0%, respectively. The time spent watching broadcast television
while surfing the Web more than doubles as the week progresses, rising from a low of 5.8% of prime-time media minutes on Monday to a high of 15.9% on Thursday. The data also showed that women engage
in the most simultaneous viewing.
"This trend of going online while watching prime-time television represents a significant opportunity for advertisers who want to target viewers with a message
to visit content online," said Matt Reid, director of strategic initiatives for Integrated Media Measurement Inc. "The landscape is moving at a steady pace from multiplatform advertising to
simultaneous multiplatform advertising."
The study was implemented through a research panel built by IMMI to capture Internet as well as television and radio consumption. IMMI provides panel
members with a mobile phone, asking them to carry it with them wherever they go. The mobile phone is equipped with a technology that creates digital signatures of all the audio media (television,
radio and movies) to which it has been exposed. IMMI can determine viewing audiences, as well as certain types of consumer behavior, based on a timeline of when the media was viewed or
heard.--Tanya Irwin