TiVo: Users Watch Personally Relevant Ads!

One hates to be disturbed right in the middle of a program by an advertisement. So it was but natural that the arrival of DVRs would be hugely applauded. However it spelt doom for many as well. The biggest worry for broadcasters and advertisers when the TiVo came out was that people would buy a TiVo and skip all advertisements. While not everyone has a DVR today, it won’t be long before they do. Almost all pay-TV providers sell or lease DVRs these days. Owning a DVR is fast becoming a rage.

 But the idea that TiVo users might skip all commercials has been proven false. Indeed DVR users skip commercials but not all of them. A story released by Cnet recently reported that major chunks of TiVo users skip irrelevant ads but do stop to watch products that they might maybe buy. Like in the case of a household with children under the age of twelve, commercials about toys, computer games, child skincare products etc. are watched often. Households with adults over the age of fifty are more likely to watch commercials about hair restoration products, collectibles and art, political parties and foreign travel etc. This data was collected by TiVo from roughly 15,000 volunteer households in May.

While it might amaze many that TiVo users do watch ads, it spells relief for broadcasters and advertisers. The need for couch potatoes to watch commercials is imperative for the sale of many products in the markets these days.