PVRs “Less of a Threat”?

Research conducted by Procter & Gamble indicates viewers retain fast-forwarded commercials at about the same rate as normal speed:

The surprising research has led at least some P&G marketing executives to conclude that TiVo may not pose the threat to TV advertising that many predict, according to executives close to the company. A P&G spokeswoman declined to comment on the research, saying, “We have nothing we can share publicly on TiVo.”

….P&G has in the past shared other TiVo research that found only about a third of TiVo users actually fast-forward through ads, though fast-forwarding becomes more frequent the longer people use the PVR technology.

Know your audience

“What we found was actually very encouraging, because it says align your commercial message with the kind of programming your target audience is interested in and they’ll get the message whether they TiVo it or not,” Mr. Schar said.

“In the end, I would bet [P&G] can be convinced by research that TiVo will not have that much of an impact,” he said. “They may still go out and try to browbeat the networks into giving them a lower CPM [cost per thousand viewers] on the basis of it, but they’d want to know either way.” [AdAge.com]

This will be a fly in the anti-digital recorder’s ointment.