-Each month, 10.3 million U.S. mobile phone subscribers access video content via their phones — up 14% from 2007

-Still, mobile video use in the U.S. remains low (5% of all subscribers), compared to other mobile media

-Among mobile video users, Apple’s iPhone is the most popular phone: as of Q3 2008, 11% of all streaming video users were using an Apple iPhone, and 35% of iPhone users reported regularly using mobile video (compared to about 5% of all mobile subscribers)

-Mobile Web video has fast become the most popular means (66% of mobile video users) of mobile video consumption – however, many mobile video users continue to pay for access to a video service (42% of mobile video users)

-YouTube was the leading Web video provider in Q3 2008, accessed by about three million U.S. mobile subscribers — the Web video giant’s mobile audience grew by 277% from October 2007 to October 2008

-Subscriptions to mobile video are also growing – from 13.2 million in Q3 2007 to 16.4 million in Q3 2008

-Usage frequency among mobile video users is relatively low (17 videos per month median), but overall satisfaction with the mobile video experience is high among current users — as of Q3 2008, 71% of mobile video viewers said they were satisfied with their mobile video experience

Download a copy of Nielsen’s new white paper, “Tuned into the Phone: Mobile Video Use in the U.S. and Abroad.”

Read more about who’s watching mobile video and what they’re watching in the January 2009 issue of Nielsen’s “Consumer Insight” online newsletter.

Read coverage of Nielsen’s findings in Mediaweek.

Who are these HD TV adopters?  According to a new study released Monday by Nielsen PreView, these HD equipped homes tend to be upscale, college educated, and have younger heads of household.  Sixty percent of HD homes also own DVR machines — compared to 24% of all homes in Nielsen’s National People Meter sample.  Nielsen Preview also reports that all HD homes are Cable Plus (including satellite), and the majority of HD homes have Wired Digital Cable.

Among HD household members, men — particularly 18-49 year olds — account for slightly more of the HD audience.  In contrast, female HD viewing was similar to national TV viewing averages, but among older demos –- Females 65+ — HD TV viewing is 26% lower than the national TV viewing averages for that age group.

Sports commentary programs and political shows were the top genres viewed on HD television.  Sports commentary shows performed 31% better (in terms of ratings) in HD homes, compared to national TV viewing averages.

View Nielsen PreView’s study.

-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: 13.4 million viewers)

-The most-watched NBA Finals in five years (Celtics-Lakers, NBA Championship Series average: 14.9 million viewers)

-The most-watched NHL regular season game in nine years; most-watched finals in five years (Winter Classic: 2.5 million viewers; Stanley Cup, Penguins–Red Wings average: 4.5 million viewers)

-The most-watched Wimbledon final in eight years (Federer-Nadal: 5.2 million viewers)

The surge in viewership could be attributed to the dramatic storylines behind these games and events, but Nielsen’s analysis shows that new technology is enhancing the sports fan’s experience:

-Ratings for sports events are 20% higher in homes with high-definition TV sets vs. total U.S.

-75 million people visited sports websites in October 2008

-11.6 million unique users logged more than 1.2 billion minutes on fantasy sports sites in 2008

-10.6 million U.S. mobile subscribers accessed sports content via the mobile Web in August 2008

View the full report.

Read coverage of Nielsen’s findings in USA Today.

Take our poll.

Cord Cutting Craze
Wireless/cellular only homes, which grew by 20% in 2008, now account for 18% of all U.S. households.  One-third of the wireless-only households have never had a landline, while the remaining two-thirds are cord cutters. Not surprisingly, cord-cutter households tend to be younger and are more likely to rent/lease their home.  Expect the wireless-only trend to grow, as homes continue to drop their landlines and young adults start new households with wireless phone service only.

Smartphone Surge
Both the Blackberry and the iPhone saw tremendous growth this year, reaching penetration rates of 6% and 2%, respectively.  The two wireless devices have attracted very different customers, however.  While the Blackberry appeals to a somewhat older, suburban consumer looking for a proven technology, the iPhone attracts a younger, urban consumer looking for the newest technology.

Mobile Media Malaise
Growth of cellular phones with streaming video or MP3 music players slowed in 2008, with penetration levels similar to those seen last year.  Among current owners, use of advanced services, such as streaming video and audio, decreased this year – a potential red flag.

Fiber Optic Future
Fiber optic TV grew at a measured pace, with penetration up 50% this year — from 2% in 2007 to 3% in 2008.  By comparison, cable and satellite usage was flat over the last year.  Look for dramatic future growth, with fiber optic TV penetration hitting 10% within the next two years and attracting an exceptionally affluent customer base.

Nielsen’s tip for telecom marketers: stress the value of your products.  Consumers will continue to seek out the latest “bells and whistles,” but they’ll be weighing the costs and the benefits more carefully than ever.

View Nielsen Claritas’s complete report.

NBC.com, which grew 312% month-over-month, saw the largest September increase in video viewers, followed by FOX Broadcasting and ABC.com, with 165% and 105% growth, respectively, Nielsen Online reported Thursday.

“A combination of series and season premiers, political news and parodies, and coverage of the financial crisis all contributed to increased online video viewing for the television networks in September,” Jon Gibs, vice president, media analytics, Nielsen Online, noted. “Consumers are increasingly relying on the Web to catch up on content they missed when it aired on television and the networks are beginning to capitalize on this trend.”

Total video streams in a variety of entertainment categories also increased last month.

Overall, the number of unique viewers streaming video online increased 6% — from 117,916 viewers in August to 125,061 in September.  Meanwhile, total video streams increased 10% month-over-month — from 8.06 million in August to 8.89 million in September.

YouTube, Yahoo! and Fox Interactive Media were the top brands, ranked by video streams, during September.

View the full press release.

Read coverage of Nielsen’s findings in TV Week, Media Post, and Biz Report.com.

The stories cited a joint study conducted by Nielsen and the Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing (CTAM), which found that 35% of adults surveyed have watched at least one television program via the Internet.  Of those, 87% have watched television programs directly from a TV network website, while 82% have gone online to catch up on an episode they missed on TV.

But don’t expect online streaming video to replace viewing via traditional TV sets anytime soon.  The stories note that most adults (94%) still prefer to watch television on their living room sets, according to Nielsen and CTAM.

Learn more about Nielsen and CTAM’s study.