Nielsen Study Says Younger Viewers Using The Web and DVR's To Catch Up On TV Shows

While not much of a surprise (but nice to have some quantitative proof), a new Nielsen study says that younger viewers spend more time using DVR's and streaming web video to catch up on TV shows they've missed than older viewers.

The study shows that 56% of adults 18 to 34 use DVRs, the Web and other means for watching episodes of TV programs they missed during their normal on-air broadcast, compared to 21% of viewers 55 and older. For all viewers, the DVR, at 29%, ranked as the most popular way to catch up with a show, while waiting for a rerun came in second, at 26%. Streaming web content is finding greater and greater use on sites like ABC.com, NBC.com, CBS.com, iTunes and YouTube.

From The Hollywood Reporter:

"This will have tremendous implications on how networks schedule and distribute programming," said Steve McGowan, senior vp of client research initiatives.

"The bottom line is that younger people are more adept at finding content," CBS Vision President David Poltrack told The Hollywood Reporter at Tuesday's UBS conference in midtown Manhattan. But he said that as time goes on, older viewers will also use the technology in greater numbers.