Hollywood is afraid of online video streaming, but a recent study suggests their biggest threat is the smartphone. IPG Media Lab and YuMe looked at people’s behaviors when they watched TV. They discovered participants had the TV on, but were not always actively engaged. About 94% of the study’s 48 participants were distracted during the 30 minutes of watching. The smartphone was the biggest culprit and accounted for 60% of these distractions.
The researchers also compared DVRs with the smartphone and found that turning your head to look at your phone had a greater impact than fast forwarding through a commercial. This isn’t rocket science. When you glance away, you miss the commercials on TV. When you zoom through the commercial, you get glimpses of the ad which still leaves an impression.
My own usage mirrors this study. When my phone chimes at a new tweet or an incoming email, I quickly turn away from the TV and see what just came in. TV advertisers have an uphill battle as this practice of checking my phone is so ingrained that it’s almost automatic. The only way to stop it would be to devise a method to detect when the TV is on and disable my phone.
Smartphones threaten TV advertising originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 27 May 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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