While Americans have always enjoyed television, high definition (HD) TVs are opening a new chapter in that historic love affair. Not since color TV was introduced more than 50 years ago has a new TV technology been so rapidly adopted. And despite the recession, Americans seem willing to continue to spend their hard-earned money on this new technology.
As of February 2009, slightly more than one-third of American TV homes had at least one HDTV, a marked increase from November 2008, when 29.2 percent of homes had one, and …

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 …

Almost one-quarter of all U.S. television households (23.3%) own a high definition TV set as of Nov. 30, Nielsen reported Thursday.
Nielsen’s estimates are based on a field staff review that identified TV sets capable of receiving and displaying high definition pictures, as well as those that are actually receiving those signals.
High definition TV penetration in the U.S. has more than doubled since July 2007, when Nielsen began tracking HDTV status.  At that time, only 10% of U.S. homes had access to high definition TV.

Month/Year
% of U.S. Households
With HDTV

November 2008
23.3%

October 2008
22.2%

September 2008
21.3%

August …

Was 2008 the best sports year ever?  At least in terms of viewer interest, there’s plenty of evidence to support that argument.  Consider these TV sports highlights from 2008:
-The most-watched global event ever (2008 Beijing Summer Olympics: 4.7 billion viewers)
-The most-watched Super Bowl ever (Giants-Patriots, Super Bowl XLII: 97.5 million viewers)
-The most-watched cable broadcast of all time (Cowboys-Eagles, Monday Night Football: 18.6 million viewers)
-The most-watched cable golf event of all time (Tiger vs. Rocco, U.S. Open Playoff: 4.8 million viewers)
-The most-watched cable baseball game ever (Red Sox-Rays, ALCS Game 7: …