Is TV losing out to video games?

[MikeHunt]

Is TV losing out to video games? Sony says yes.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) — Is there a prime time for video game players?

Sony, maker of the PlayStation 2 video game console, said Thursday a study of the online gaming habits showed that peak usage was between 5 p.m. to 11 p.m., a span that encompasses television's prime time.

The study, which Sony conducted in February, comes amid a potentially costly debate for the networks about whether fewer younger men have been watching broadcast television.

February is one of the television industry's "sweeps" periods, when ratings are used to set local TV advertising rates, and Sony said that 65% of its online gaming audience during TV's prime time — 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. week nights — were men aged 18 to 34.

Roughly 10%, or 2.6 million, of Sony's PS2-installed user base in North America is online, the company said.

At the outset of the TV season, viewership in the men 18-34 demographic was down anywhere from 8% to 12%, leading the networks to question the validity of the data being provided by Nielsen Media Research. Nielsen has defended the accuracy of its data.

Both sides have suggested that increased video game play could be among the many factors leading to the decline in TV viewership by younger men.

Find this article at:

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2004-03-...mes-vs-tv_x.htm

:wha': :wha': :righteousdude:

[MikeHunt]

hear ..hear!

Hi-def p0rn

[Malicious Intent]

T.V prime time? Is that when most peoples downloads finish?

[Lord_of_the_Dense]

I know I'm losing out to video games. I have so freakin many and there really is hardly anything to watch anymore. These days, not only is it more of an activity, it's more entertaining than TV. And you can return to it whenever you want to.

:psychofun: