MaxxoMedia Digital Media and Entertainment Trends

Average US Consumer Household Will Own 5-10 Web-Enabled CE Devices by 2014

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., November 17, 2010 – Over 53 million US broadband households currently view TV programs over the Internet. 85% of these users already view online TV content on multiple devices, including personal computers, TVs and mobile handsets. By 2014, there will be over 200 million web-enabled wire-line Consumer Electronic (CE) devices in operation in the US. When PCs and mobile devices are added in, the average US consumer will own between 5-10 web-enabled devices to choose from for viewing Internet-based digital entertainment.

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According to the latest data from market research firm SNL Kagan, 119,000 pay TV subscribers dropped service in the third quarter, marking the second consecutive quarter — and the second quarter ever — that the industry has lost customers.

SNL Kagan reported today that cable providers lost 741,000 subscribers in the third quarter, which compares to 711,000 subs lost in Q2, and is the largest drop that the industry has ever seen. While some of those subscribers transitioned to IPTV services from providers like AT&T and Verizon, which added 476,000 customers in the third quarter, or satellite providers like Dish Network or DirecTV, which together added 145,000 subscribers during the period, it wasn’t enough to stem the losses from cable.

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A new study has uncovered the obvious: More young people, aged 18 to 34, are going online or using handheld devices to watch TV content. The number doing so rose from 34 percent of those surveyed by Horowitz Associates in 2009 to 39 percent in 2010 according to the “Multiplatform Content and Services Study.”

“The data clearly show that when it comes to the next generation of multichannel customers we should be concerned about the ongoing and future value of the video/pay TV elements of our service offerings and the strategies in place to deal with them,” Howard Horowitz, president of Horowitz Associates said in a new release. “The penetration and usage of alternative viewing technology is reaching a tipping point and the measurable impact on how the TV product is viewed will inevitably follow.”

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Via Mashable: If you needed more proof that texting is on the rise, here’s a stat for you: the average teenager sends over 3,000 texts per month. That’s more than six texts per waking hour.

According to a new study from Nielsen, our society has gone mad with texting, data usage and app downloads. Nielsen analyzed the mobile data habits of over 60,000 mobile subscribers and surveyed over 3,000 teens during April, May and June of this year. The numbers they came up with are astounding.

The number of texts being sent is on the rise, especially among teenagers age 13 to 17. According to Nielsen, the average teenager now sends 3,339 texts per month. There’s more, though: teen females send an incredible 4,050 text per month, while teen males send an average of 2,539 texts. Teens are sending 8% more texts than they were this time last year.

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via Mashable

Pennsylvania’s Harrisburg University of Science and Technology will enact a week-long social media blackout for all students in residence. The students will be forbidden from using Twitter, Facebook, instant messaging and any other online communication except for e-mail.

NPR reports that university Provost Eric Darr chose to enact the temporary ban because he wants students to think about how much they’re using technology in their daily lives and what kind of impact it has. From NPR’s interview it doesn’t seem that he’s anti-technology or anti-social media per se; he just believes today’s college students take its role in their lives for granted.

“Often, there are behaviors or habits, ways that we use technology that we may ourselves not even be able to articulate because we’re not aware of them,” Darr says. Students will write reflective essays about their experiences after the blackout has ended.

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Social media analytics company ViralHeat is giving away free access to a treasure trove of data from Twitter, Facebook and a number of other social properties, all housed within the site’s more than 4,000 topic-based profiles.

The company’s revamped ViralHeat Social Trends offering gives users a fast and simple way to create their own auto-updating social media charts, which can be embedded as widgets elsewhere on the web, as well. Users can pull data and sentiment analysis from member-generated topic profiles spanning topics such as news, entertainment, music, sports and politics to create their own charts.

The idea is to help individuals capture and track real-time buzz and sentiment around an event, movie, celebrity or product with convenient widget-like charts optimized for sharing and embedding. The most obvious use case is for bloggers and publishers looking to supplement breaking news stories with live social media analysis on the topics they’re covering.

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A growing set of consumer electronics devices, ranging from web-enabled TVs, to Blu-ray players and over-the-top set-top boxes support TV widgets. Among these TV applications are those that enable users to view YouTube videos, access Netflix, or obtain weather forecasts directly on the TV using a broadband Internet connection.

Research In-Stat research indicates only a modest consumer interest in performing PC-centric applications on the TV. Consumers have higher interest in TV applications that enhance and/or augment the viewing experience, rather than simply provide information that is readily accessible via other screens.

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I know my online video viewing has already surpassed my TV viewing.  Nevertheless, according to a new report by The Diffusion Group (TDG) titled The Economics of Over-the-Top TV Delivery: How Television Networks Can Shift to Online Content Delivery, Americans will be watching more online video than broadcast TV by 2020,.

According to the report, Online video is still in its infancy, with U.S. viewers only watching 22 minutes of Internet-delivered programming a week [ML: This seems very low to me]. However, in 10 years, that will rise to more than two hours of online video a day according to TDG analyst Colin Dixon.

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Teens Cell Phone Habits

47% of US teens say their social life would end or be worsened without their cell phone, and 57% credit their mobile device with improving their life. Four out of five teens (17 million) carry a wireless device (a 40% increase since 2004), according to a study by Harris Interactive.

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A survey of 1,000 U.S. consumers showed that more of us than ever before are choosing to watch TV shows on websites such as Hulu rather than on a TV. For younger folks, a full 83% said they watched some, most or all of their TV programming online.

This study, which was conducted by consumer electronics shopping site Retrevo, shows that the majority of Americans — 64%, according to the survey results — get at least some of their TV content online. Eight percent of the total said they watched most of their TV shows online, and 5% said they only watched television programs on the Internet.

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The percentage of Americans age 12 and older who have a profile on one or more social networking Web sites has reached almost half (48%) of the population in 2010 – double the level from two years ago (24% in 2008). Consumer use of social networking sites is not just a youth phenomenon. While nearly eight in ten teens (78%) and 18 to 24s (77%) have personal profile pages, almost two-thirds of 25 to 34s (65%) and half of 35 to 44s (51%) also now have personal profile pages. 30% of Americans age 12 and older, who have a profile on at least one social networking Web site, use those sites “several times a day” compared with only 18% one year ago, according to a new survey from Arbitron.  Download a free copy

The use of social networking sites has expanded beyond younger consumers, with substantial numbers of Americans over the age of 35 now using social media. Social networking has become a part of mainstream media behavior.

Americans continue to hold radio in high regard, with nearly eight in ten saying they plan to listen to as much AM/FM radio in the future as they do now – despite advances of technology. Younger consumers show interest in radio on mobile phones. More than four in ten mobile phone owners age 12 to 24 say they would listen more to FM radio if a tuner were built into those phones. Continue Reading »