TiVo studies ad-skipping habits, clues in networks
The smug sense of satisfaction that comes from using a TiVo and knowing how much your commercial skipping infuriates network execs might be a little ill-founded, according to a New York Times report. Apparently, TiVo has been compiling detailed reports on user habits, including how often people skip commercials and which commercials they skip, and the networks can't wait to get their hands on the data. With ad revenues potentially dropping due to people not actually watching commercials anymore, the networks are trying to figure out how to get people to voluntarily not skip them. They've found that ads that relate to the programming — ads with animals on Animal Planet, for example — get people to take their fingers off the remote control and pay attention. Does this mean forensic themed ads for everything from Doritos to Best Buy will start showing up during CSI? Maybe, but hey, they've gotta pay the bills to keep you entertained somehow.