RECENT FINDINGS

DVR Primetime Multi-tasking Skyrockets as the Workweek Progresses

Advertisers looking to reach television audiences simultaneously on multiple platforms are starting to get their chance, according to a new study released by IMMI. They would be well advised, however, to consider how multi-tasking behavior varies by day of week.

The study on multi-tasking during primetime television showed that during weeknight television viewing (Sunday-Thursday), viewers spent an average of 9.3 percent of primetime viewing minutes also online. The breakdown between cable and broadcast television was 8.2 percent and 11.0 percent, respectively. The time spent watching broadcast television while surfing the Web more than doubles as the week progresses, going from a low of 5.8 percent of primetime media minutes on Monday to a high of 15.9 percent on Thursday. The data also showed that women engage in the most simultaneous viewing and browsing, and are more likely to visit social network sites. Men are more inclined to visit news and information sites while multi-tasking during primetime. These patterns suggest that viewers want a more immersive and passive media experience earlier in the week, perhaps as part of a more holistic break from work as they begin the workweek, but by the end of the workweek they are busy planning for weekend activities and more willing to consume media in multidimensional ways.

The most active age segment was P20-29, which showed an overall 15.9% rate of multi-tasking while watching primetime broadcast television, indexing at 145 next to the entire population (11%). This was somewhat surprising to IMMI, as F30-39 is consistently the highest-multitasking group of all, when considering all dayparts for television. In this study F30-39 logged a 12.0% rate of multi-tasking during broadcast primetime. But this is still nearly six times greater than their male counterparts, who logged the lowest rate of multitasking for any age/gender segment - M30-39 showed 2.3% rate of multitasking. Within the highest multi-tasking P20-29 segment, Females outpaced Males by a wider margin (21.7% vs 11.0%) than in the overall population (13.2% vs 9.4%).

Given these day-over-day patterns during the week, advertisers launching a cross-over campaign which includes a call-to-action to go online would be best served during primetime during Wednesday and Thursday. Conversely, advertisers with a branding message who favor a more passive audience would be best served earlier in the week.

The study was implemented through a special research panel built by IMMI to capture Internet as well as television and radio consumption.