Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Technology Stocks : IATV-ACTV Digital Convergence Software-HyperTV -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: dwight martin who wrote (5788)	8/2/1999 10:07:00 AM
From: Steve Hausser	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 13157

Who's Watching What? A living room for the new millenium By Matt Stump At one point in their careers, Marshall Cohen, Betsy Frank, Jeff Morris and Kim Lemon all worked for Viacom. Two are still current employees: Frank at MTV and Lemon at Showtime. Cohen has moved to AOL while Morris is now CEO at Yack.com; a startup firm specializing in live Internet events and chats. They all converged at a CTAM panel last month to debate THE question for the late '90s: How much does PC usage cut into TV viewing? Cohen got off one of the better lines of the day, saying, "Well, two of us are over here now," referring to research executives who've made the switch from traditional media to the Internet. There's no doubt the Internet is affecting TV viewing. But exactly how much, and what it all means, is open to endless debate. The dyed-in-the-wool Internet crowd tends to think of the major media companies as huge dinosaurs, unable or unwilling to plunge headlong into the Internet business because they fear they'll cannibalize their existing business. That theme runs from the entertainment and information industries down through booksellers, witness Barnes & Noble vs. Amazon.com. Never mind that some media companies, like ESPN and CNN, have built very successful Web brands. And never mind that Internet firms are partnering with major broadcasters and others to gain valuable mass marketing exposure. It would seem both sides need each other despite the perceived divide between the hip and the staid. With that backdrop, the panel wrestled with the cannibalization issue. Studies show that up to 20% of Americans has a PC and TV in the same room, and they are often on at the same time. Does that mean there is inevitably a winner and a loser? It's easy to approach the issue with a traditional, linear thinking mindset, i.e., people do one thing at one time. The TV programming model flows like this. The TV is turned on. Nielsen PeopleMeters measure the viewing. Eyeballs are translated into ratings. Ratings generate advertising dollars. Advertising pays for TV programming in the first place. It's direct and linear. Never mind that although the TV may be "on" for seven hours a day in the average household, actually viewing is likely lower, perhaps a lot lower. Internet mavens are quick to point that out. When the TV and PC are on at the same time, CTAM panelists said 60% of a viewer's attention is turned to the PC. Consumers are watching TV with one eye, or listening only, while checking email, chatting or doing other Internet tasks on the PC. One panelist suggested the TV remained on as a diversion tactic while consumers waited for Web pages to download from the Internet. That led to the next logical question: "What happens when consumers have a high-speed connection?" Downloads will be so fast there would be no need to watch TV during the wait because there will be no wait. The trends suggest that consumers, especially the younger generation, are engaged in communications and entertainment multitasking. They're probably even talking on the phone while the TV and PC are on. Measuring all that usage, whether actual or background, is difficult. It flies in the face of the traditional, ratings-based foundation the media use today to conduct business. Does a TV show rating count if you hear but don't actively watch the show? Probably, because consumers still "hear" the commercial. What if the audio is turned down, but the video remains on the screen? Nielsen counts that as viewing. People are looking for successful broadband/Internet/TV economic models. But they're forced to use existing linear measurements for usage. Those measurements may not cut it in a multitasking, multisenses (as in eyes, ears) world. But there's probably some 24-year-old, somewhere, with the answer. (August 2, 1999) More Cable World