Time Spent Watching Video Fell in Third Quarter: Nielsen
CTV made big gains as cord-cutting continued
![Nielsen Video Watching CTV](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/PUz7trbCLdHpKUfXRnpkKF-320-80.png)
Adults spent less time watching video during the third quarter of 2020, but spent a lot more time streaming connected TV, according to the latest Total Audience Report from Nielsen.
Nielsen said that the average time spent per day with video fell to 5 hours and 21 seconds during the third quarter of 2020, compared to 5 hours and 22 seconds in 2019 and 5 hours and 24 seconds in 2019.
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Against that current, time spent watching TV connected devices (CTV) grew while live plus time shifted tv dropped. Adults spent 1 hour and 5 minutes per day with CTV in the third quarter, up from 55 minutes in the third quarter of 2019 and 47 minutes in the third quarter of 2018. Adults spent 12 minutes watching video on a computer, up from 7 minutes the past two years.
Live plus time shifted TV fell to 3 hours and 41 minutes from 3:56 a year ago and 4:13 in 2018.
Nielsen said that the share of homes with a multichannel TV subscription fell to 75.4% in February 2019 to 76.1% in February 2020.
Traditional cable subs fell to 66.9% from 69.2%, while virtual multichannel video programming distributors like YouTube TV increased to 8.6% from 6.9%.
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Over the air households represented 13.7% of homes, up from 13.6% and 10.8% were broadband only homes, up from 10.4%
Nielsen noted that 10% of the homes subscribing to a vMVPD also subscribe to traditional cable, while 24% are in over-the-air homes and 66% are in broadband only homes.
Homes with a subscription video on demand service grew to 74% from 73%. Enabled smart TVs grew to 56% of homes from 52%. Other internet connected devices rose to 48% from 42%.
Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.