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May 26, 2012

Average U.S. home gets over 100 channels

by Brad Trechak, posted Jun 9th 2008 2:04PM

TVAccording to a study done by Nielsen, the average home in the United State gets 119 channels from their cable provider. The study seems to hint that this is a major factor contributing to the decrease in overall ratings for broadcast television. As a result of this, the networks face a greater amount of competition.

Other interesting finds from the study include:
  • In 2007, the average household increased the number of channels it watched (up to 16 channels an average of 10 minutes per week each).
  • Scripted television still is the majority of the English-language product (40% of primetime programming) despite all talk of a reality television boom. Variety programs comprise 23%.
  • The average U.S. TV home has 2.5 people and 2.8 TV sets.
  • 61% of homes have wired cable hookups, down from a high of 68% in 2000, and 27% have satellite or specialized antenna systems to receive signals, up from 19% in 2005.

In short, if you can't find anything to watch tonight it's from a lack of quality and not a lack of quantity.

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erroneous_nick

I've got just under 70 channels (basic cable) and only watch about 8-10 of those and only about half that number get my regular viewing. Even at that, there ain't crap on so why the hell would I want even more channels?

I agree with the two comments above; one about cable being a better offering and the other about the internet being the future of entertainment. I never, ever, not even once sit down and watch something when it airs. Never. It's all when I want to see it. I have a life that's not scheduled around something as frivolous as entertainment.

June 09 2008 at 11:19 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
dwacon_com

With all those channels, still nothing to watch! But the concept of networks and channels will go away... the internet will be a bot-rich cauldron of entertainment for us to choose from... all decided based on our preferences stored in Google. LOL!

June 09 2008 at 8:45 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Carissa

Curious - if 40% is scripted, and 23.3% is variety, what is the rest? And, does 40% scripted include shows such as the Hills or whatever, which we know is truly scripted after all?

Yep - cable broadcasts have become my shows of choice. The programs are just better. Better quality, better scheduling (sometimes on multiple times per week), better at taking chances.

June 09 2008 at 3:44 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Dave

I get less than 30 channels and I watch fewer than 10 of them.

June 09 2008 at 3:13 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply

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