• by Wayne Friedman , November 19, 2010

Around 20% more U.S. TV viewers are time-shifting versus a year ago -- which is about the same increase in overall time-shifted viewing. Some 97.9 million people are regularly time-shifting on a monthly basis, up from 94.6 million, in the second quarter 2010, according to The Nielsen Company.

Overall, time-shifted viewing grew 85 minutes to 9 hours and 27 minutes among all U.S. TV viewers. (Time-shifted viewing also includes video-on-demand, DVR machines, and time-shifting services like Time Warner's Start Over.)

In DVR homes alone, users are playing back programming at 24 hours and 37 minutes a month -- a 16 minute gain against second quarter 2009.

Going against the growth in the time-shifting trend was that second-quarter viewing per month was down nine minutes from the 9 hours and 36 minutes of the first quarter 2010. Nielsen says this is normal, given television's usual trend, heavier TV screening in the winter months, lower in the summer periods.

The number of U.S. TV viewers remain flat: at 286.6 million versus 286.2 million in the second quarter 2009. So doe total monthly viewing at 143.3 minutes. The most viewing per month on average is among 65+ viewers, at 196 minutes; the least goes to teens 12-17 at 103 minutes.