Americans are watching more TV than ever, and the increasing penetration of DVRs has likely contributed to increased viewership.  But “Must See TV” doesn’t mean that people are gathering around their TV anymore during primetime on a Thursday night.  Appointment viewing is now when the viewer wants to watch it thanks to DVRs.  As of March 2009, 30.6 percent of households in Nielsen’s National People Meter Panel have a DVR, up significantly from just 12.3 percent in January 2007.
A key factor to this expansion is the integration of DVRs into …

According to a new Nielsen study, household television and peripheral trends are holding steady, even though the uncertain economic conditions are affecting just about every household and consumer behavior across the country.  To determine whether Americans’ continued affection for TV and related entertainment might be impacted by the economy, Nielsen examined several household characteristics among its National People Meter sample for the five quarters running from Q4 2007 to Q4 2008.
During this period, households with broadcast only (i.e., no cable or satellite service) TVs declined from 11.5 percent to 10.9 …

Apple’s iPhones have doubled their penetration rate versus a year ago, according to Nielsen’s most recent Home Technology Report.  iPhone penetration hit 5.9 percent in Q3 2008, up from 3 percent in Q3 2007.
In addition to the increased popularity of the iPhone, Nielsen found that DVRs such as Tivo are showing up in more homes, with penetration up over 50% versus a year ago.  Households with teens were over 30 percent more likely than the average household to own or rent a DVR device.
Download the full report here.
Nielsen’s Q3 2008 …

MediaPost’s MediaDailyNews reported Thursday that DVR’s are now in 25% of U.S. homes — an increase of 5% from nine months ago, according to Nielsen.
The data from Nielsen confirms anecdotal evidence indicating that DVR users are passionate about the devices.  The story noted that in 30% of the estimated 28 million homes with DVRs, the devices are connected to more than one TV set.