Interesting study on fast-forwarding

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Interesting study on fast-forwarding

CBS is about to release a study showing that DVR users have better retention of commercial messages than people viewing ads at regular speed. They claim a recall rate of 23% for DVR fast forwarders, but don't mention what lower rate regular TV folks recall ads at.

It's kind of weird on the surface, but makes sense for a few reasons. One is that people using FF are concentrating at 100%, waiting to see the show come back so they can stop, while most folks stuck in 30-second ad jail can let their mind wander or take off to the kitchen for other things. Ads also have a tendency to repeat often (repeat often...often...), and I know when I'm watching shows I can spot that same damn weight loss pill ad for serious dieters and that same ad for Chili's that comes on at each break. I also suspect we're used to decades of ads displaying images at a certain rate and a certain pace, and I wouldn't be surprised if a psychologist would say the super quick cuts seen during FF would be more jarring and memorable in the end. [via MarketingVox and Mike]

by Matt Haughey November 19, 2004 in News

Comments

Whoa. You sure it's not that they are fast forwarding so fast that the ads enter as subliminal messages?

Posted by: kirbyMeister at Nov 19, 2004 6:01:33 PM

Lots of hubub lately about fast forwarding [and ad inserting] has me asking one question:

Who that owns a DVR still fast forwards?

I'd assume all ReplayTV users use the 30 sec. skip, Commercial Advance or ad segment skipping capability.

Is it naive to think that most TiVo users know the time skip hack? If there's any hack that an average person would know, it's that one.

Do generic DVRs from cable co's lack any skip capability?

Given the ability to skip, why fast forward?

Posted by: Bill G at Nov 19, 2004 6:07:38 PM

I never 30 second skip on my TiVos because it doesn't quite work for me. Sure, ads are usually 30 seconds long, but there are always bumper areas for station ID and half-commercials that I found if a show went to commercial and I clicked the skip 4-5 times, I'd end up in the program, then have to go back, then forward, and try to get to the right spot.

In the end it seems like it takes longer for me to get through ads with skip, and I also miss the chance for an ad I might want to see.

Posted by: Matt Haughey at Nov 19, 2004 6:12:42 PM

I'm with Matt on why I don't use a :30 skip.

That said, I'm unsurprised. I've been taping off episodes of Northern Exposure for a friend who's a huge fan of the show, and in order to fit more onto the tape, I sit down and watch [or at least monitor] each episode, fast-forwarding through the commercial breaks. When Hallmark Channel was airing NX, you saw the same subset of commercials each time around. The "weight loss supplement" Relacore had the same ad spot in every episode ... I don't remember their number off the top of my head, but if you rattled it off, I'd certainly recognize it.

Posted by: Geof F. Morris at Nov 19, 2004 7:10:21 PM

Bill, IIRC most cable DVRs don't have an skip-forward, just FF.

Posted by: MegaZone at Nov 19, 2004 7:30:13 PM

Interesting. Perhaps my experience is unusual. On all shows except the Law & Order megaseries, Replay's Commercial Advance works so that I never see an ad.

The L&O's put so much black airtime in the middle of the show I have to go manual and use the 30 sec. skip. Still, a commerical pod is usually 6 or 8 ads and I can jump past all but the last one or two without seeing anything.

I think I only use my FF button to jump 12 hr. increments in the program guide to look at future scheduling.

I guess, as in all things, your mileage may vary.

Posted by: Bill G at Nov 19, 2004 7:37:24 PM

I occasionally find myself rewinding to see a commercial that catches my eye. But then I only need to see it once. So I skip 99% of commercials, but probably see most ads at least once, and definitely remember them better.

Posted by: Pheo at Nov 20, 2004 7:44:42 AM

ReplayTV user.

I generally let the Rtv skip the commerical break in it's entirety.

If the detection is off for a particular show, I 2+quickskip (2 minutes), then quick skip until back unit show. From that point instant replay (7 seconds) until into the bumper or end of commercial.

Never FF.

Posted by: Slack at Nov 22, 2004 9:14:27 AM

I didn't know about the 30 second skip until last week. Since then, I've started using it, but my dance is to press it four times, then a couple more at a time until I hit the program, and then the "replay" button until I catch the tail of the last commercial. That is much quicker than FFing.

Posted by: Phelps at Nov 22, 2004 11:24:04 AM

mnbyondart.com go for Bach)

Posted by: rackets at Jul 2, 2005 8:19:49 AM

has any on seen the message after a lot of the cbs shows including two and a half men what and what does it say

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