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It's All In The Numbers
January 8, 2010
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Statistics can be made to prove anything -- even the truth.
-- AnonymousAs we start 2010, I thought some of you might like to see some of these facts I received from The Center For Media Research this week that were put together by the Nielsen Company.
"Apropos to the Consumer Electronics Show, but equally valuable as a benchmark of the Electronic Media Industry starting out in 2010, Nielsen releases a fact sheet appended with the prediction that " ... In 2010, we see a continuation, if not an acceleration, of current trends with consumers watching and connecting more."
And now the statistics: (All compiled by The Nielsen Company - 2009)
TELEVISION
- U.S. homes with at least one TV - 114.9M
- U.S. homes that are cable and/or satellite ready - 103.6M
- U.S. homes with digital cable - 50.9M
- U.S. homes with satellite TV - 32.7M
- TVs in the U.S. that are HD capable - 47.4M
- U.S. homes with a VCR - 75.8M (down 10% since 2007)
- U.S. homes with a DVD player = 101M (up 1% since 2007)
- U.S. homes with a DVR - 36.7M (up 12% since 2007)
Percentage Of TV Households That Own:
- 1 TV Set - 16.7%
- 2 TVs - 28.3%
- 3 TVs - 25.1%
- 4 or more TVs - 26.0%
How (and How Much) We Watch
Almost 99% of video content watched in the U.S. is on traditional television
- The average American watches 31.5 hrs of TV per week
- An average DVR user watches 7 hrs 54 minutes of time-shifted TV each month (up 22.5% from 2008)
- Kids aged 6-11 watch 28 hrs of live TV a week
MOBILE PHONES
- U.S. mobile phone users 13+ - 223M
- Number of mobile Web users - 60.7M (up 33% from 2008)
- Percentage of mobile devices that are smartphones - 18% (up from 13% in 2008)
- Percentage of mobile device owners that streamed audio - 8%
- Percentage of mobile device owners that viewed video via their mobile phone - 7%
Growth of cell phone only homes in the U.S. in 2009... 21%; 2008... 18%;
2007... 15%
Top 5 Smartphones (% Ownership)
- Blackberry 8300 Curve - 17%
- Apple iPhone 3G - 15%
- Apple iPhone 3G S - 12%
- Blackberry 9530 Storm - 6%
- Blackberry 8100 Pearl - 5%
INTERNET
- 195M Active U.S. Internet users
- 160.3M People who accessed the Internet via a broadband connection: (93.3%... up 16% from 2008)
- 138.4M Unique viewers of video (up 11.4% from 2008)
- 11.2B Total online video streams viewed monthly (up 17% from 2008)
- 200.1 minutes Average time spent viewing online video per viewer monthly (up 12.5% from 2008)
Social Networking
- Facebook reaches 56% of the active U.S. Internet universe with an average usage of 6 hrs a month per user
- Facebook is the #3 site visited by users 65 and older
- Twitter grew 500% year-over-year
- Time spent on social networking sites in the U.S. increased 277%
- The average U.S. worker spends 5 hrs. a month visiting social networks at the office
- 32% of all mobile web users visited a social network
VIDEO GAMES
- 73% of households own a device they specifically use for gaming
- 54% of households own a video game console or handheld system
- 41% of households have 7th generation game console
- 23% of households own a handheld console
- 45% of active gamers are female (defined as playing at least one hour per week)
- 49% of Nintendo Wii owners are female and 52% of Sony Playstation Portable (PSP) owners are female
- Top Game Consoles Ranked By Share Of Total Usage Minutes: Xbox 360 - 23.1%;
- PlayStation 2 - 20.4%; Nintendo Wii - 19.0%
AUDIO FILE INFO
- 49.1M U.S. homes have MP3 players
- 20.5M U.S. homes have satellite radio
(Source All Data: The Nielsen Company as of November 2009, (Company-wide
reports and surveys)
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THE 'A-SIDE' - TRACK 2
THE 'AVATAR' STORY
In just 20 days, James Cameron's latest film, "Avatar," has brought in over $374 million dollars at the box office here in the U.S., and $1.131 billion worldwide, which now makes it the second highest grossing film of all time worldwide. Cameron's "Titanic" is still the #1 worldwide grosser with $1.842 billion. (Source: www.boxofficemojo.com
)Whether or not "Avatar" passes "Titanic" (and there's a good chance it might), Cameron has created not only another box-office monster, but a film that employs the latest digital technology available and new 3-D technology created specifically for the film. (Cameron waited for years to make the film so the cameras he needed could be developed)
The 3-D experience in "Avatar" is breathtaking (and I imagine in the IMAX version even more so), and many who have seen the film, have seen it more than once. No more red/blue 3-D glasses that give you headaches and often do not actually enhance a 3-D moviegoing experience.
A lot of the talk coming at out the CES show here in Las Vegas this week is about how the technology in "Avatar" will be adopted by other film makers, and television, to capture new audience. (See the article below "Will 'Avatar' Changed The Way We Watch Television?")
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THE 'A-SIDE' - TRACK 3
FOR ALL THOSE WHO KNEW SOMETHING LIKE THIS WOULD HAPPEN ... BUT WHAT EXACTLY IS HAPPENING?
Though it hasn't been reported elsewhere, entertainment/celebrity website TMZ.com is reporting NBC will pull the plug on the "Jay Leno Show" on February 1st. After the Winter Olympics, Leno will return to his old 11:30p slot with a half-hour show. (How that would work is anyone's guess) The website is also reporting that Conan O'Brien will then move to a midnight to 1a slot, with Jimmy Fallon following, if O'Brien takes the deal. If he doesn't, Leno will then have an hour show, and O'Brien could go elsewhere.
Since NBC moved O'Brien to the "Tonight Show" 11:30p time slot, he has failed to perform well in ratings against Letterman and CBS. NBC, always the late-night ratings champ when Leno had the 11:30p time slot, obviously wants to stop the bleeding.
Another industry website, deadline Hollywood.com, is reporting "a staff meeting (at the "Jay Leno Show") was held today assuring everyone that the show is not cancelled. But staff were told there's a good likelihood the show could move to just Fridays or worse. Now no one on the show, or in Hollywood for that matter, believes NBC isn't canceling 'The Jay Leno Show' in primetime at 10p." ( http://tinyurl.com/yeotkdl
)Whatever happens, it's going to be some time before NBC gets it together again to regain the late-night ratings crown.
And Now For Some News ...
The 2009 Wrap-Up: Music Purchases Up, Album Sales Down
Rolling StoneThe 2009 year-end Nielsen SoundScan numbers reveal that Taylor Swift edged Susan Boyle in terms of album sales, and that the Beatles and Michael Jackson can still move major units.
But how did the music biz do overall last year? Slightly better than the year before. Total music purchases were up 2.1% over 2008, as '09 brought in 1.545 billion overall music sales -- which factors in albums, singles, digital tracks and music videos -- compared to the 1.513 billion combined in 2008.
Despite the 2% increase, total album sales continued to slide at an alarming rate. Physical and digital sales combined for 373.9 million albums sold in 2009, down from the 428.4 million in 2008 for a 12.7% decrease.
Read more about it by clicking here.
Warner Music & Hulu Cut Deal
MediaweekWarner Music Group is the second major label to strike a content licensing deal with Hulu, the Internet video site co-owned by NBCU and News Corp. The deal brings music videos, concert performances, interviews and behind-the-scenes footage to the site.
Now, a Muse-branded page will appear on the Hulu site, which currently features a "Saturday Night Live" performance, several performances from Wembley Stadium, and interviews and deep-catalog videos. Next up are Jason Mraz and Paramore. The deal comes after WMG settled its licensing dispute with YouTube in September, adding a Warner-branded channel to Hulu that features links back to artist Web sites and direct sales.
Read more about it by clicking here.
Blame Labels For File-Sharing, Says Defendant
Media PostThe record labels themselves are partly to blame for file-sharing on peer-to-peer networks, grad student Joel Tenenbaum argues in court papers filed Monday. A jury recently found Tenenbaum liable for copyright infringement and decided he should pay $675,000 for sharing 30 tracks, but Tenenbaum now says he's entitled to a new trial.
The labels' "continued conduct of releasing their recordings into a digitally networked environment on DRM-free CDs made the proliferation of their recordings on the peer-to-peer networks trivially easy," Tenenbaum says in a motion for a new trial. "Their aggressive promotion of their recordings made such proliferation entirely predictable. Indeed, their mode of publication all but invited sharing."
Read more about it by clicking here.
CBS And Disney Looking At iTunes
Fast Company <http://link.mediapost.com/go2.shtml?PLtpxBV2yM4fgxlR/88c8f25645a3d8a4/cca1a05d5ba52ed4/stephennmeyer@earthlink.net>The Wall Street Journal reports that both CBS and Disney are expressing interest in Apple's proposal to stream subscribed TV content via iTunes. According to sources, Apple has been in talks with multiple networks. Calling it "Cable TV's Appleocalypse," Fast Company says the rumor makes sense on many levels, starting with the fact that Apple and Disney have had close ties for years, and Steve Jobs is still Disney's largest single shareholder.
Meanwhile, Apple's recent purchase of streaming-content provider Lala would give the company much-needed expertise on wiring streaming content into iTunes. From the networks' perspective, meanwhile, Apple is a leviathan with millions of singed-up iTunes users: If it can stream TV shows (or a selection of shows from the network's archives) to these users, they mayconstitute a new audience.
Read more about it by clicking here.
Ford Readies iTunes Tagging With HD Radio In Cars
EngadgetWhy spend all that time in your car just staring at the road when you could be surfing the Web and buying things on iTunes? reasons Ford. The automaker, which had already announced that the WiFi-enabled car would be rolling off assembly lines in 2010, will be unveiling its HD radio with iTunes tagging, which allows listeners to tag songs for later purchase right from the dashboard, at CES.
Read more about it by clicking here.
TV Sets Expected To Double In Cars By 2015
Multichannel NewsAbout 17.6 million television systems for automobiles will ship in 2015, up from 8.2 million this year, according to market research firm iSuppli. The trend will be worldwide; the mobile TVs will also include portable navigation devices. Still, the market faces challenges, both financial and technical. Mobile TV in the auto space is likely to piggyback on any successes in handheld mobile TV delivery.
For broadcasters, the major mobile TV play is being led by the Open Mobile Video Coalition, which represents more than 800 local TV stations that plan to use the ATSC's mobile digital TV broadcasting standard. The OMVC has lined up device manufacturers and the group plans to launch a customer trial in Washington, D.C. next year. Also hoping to crack the market is FLO TV, Qualcomm's mobile television subsidiary, which has a deal with Audiovox to deliver live TV service through more than 12,000 new car dealers in 85markets.
Read more about it by clicking here.
Here Come Dashboard Computers
New York TimesPut down your iPhone, your cheese Danish and your low-fat latte, because fully functional computer monitors are coming to a dashboard near you - and you'll need to keep at least one finger on the steering wheel. That's right, despite warnings from safety advocates, automakers and technology companies remain bent on bestowing fourth-screens upon drivers.
In the not-too-distant future, built-in navigation features are expected to be standard equipment in a wide range of vehicles. And, while they prevent drivers from watching video and using some other functions while the car is moving, they can still pull up content as varied as restaurant reviews and the covers of music albums while en route. Advertisers might even be able to exploit this new channel, assuming their target audiences live long enough to execute future purchases.
Read more about it by clicking here.
Will 'Avatar' Change The Way We Watch Television?
TV OvermindThe 3D digital film "Avatar" was released Friday. And like all technical achievements, other mediums are following suit. Several television manufacturers -- including Phillips and LG -- are currently producing and selling 3D televisions -- though they are expensive.
Will "Avatar" (and other movies like "Avatar") change the face of television? And, more importantly, does television really need to be 3D? All complaints of 3D-viewing glasses aside, we do watch movies on television, so if a movie like "Avatar" is intended to be viewed in 3D, then watching it on a 2D television will never be the same. If the movie industry intends to increase the number of 3D movies, then 3D television is the next logical step.
Read more about it by clicking here.
Apple Tablet Heralds The Second Coming
Fox News. et al.Apple would like you to know it has much more than any mere phone in store. It is offering a life-changing experience. The Cupertino company is saying its tablet device will be ready in January and the blogosphere, predictably, is abuzz.
Sources inside Apple have confirmed a "big" event in January. And you can bet it won't be a moderate improvement to the iPhone. Mashable speculates that the Mac-World team will be none-too-happy about the January 26th announcement, since it was told by Apple that the company would not participate in the expo, because preparing a presentation over the holidays is just too taxing.
In Asia, former president of Google China Kaifu Lee, who claims to have seen the device, says it looks like a big iPhone. Of course he could have made that up after reading any one of the reports over the past six months. And Business Week, calling the forthcoming device the Jesus Tablet, says Apple's new gambit will herald the return of print, and will be embraced by publishers: "Expect to see publishers launch visually stunning versions of their magazines with swooping typography, video insets, CNN iReporter-style news uploads, social media overlays-whatever it takes to make you think
you're seeing a magazine or newspaper like never before, so much so you'll even want to pay for it."
Read more about it by clicking here.
Looking For The Best iPod Speakers?
From Cnet.comWhile a $10 patch cable can connect any music player to a home stereo or a boombox, many iPod owners prefer the convenience and style of a dedicated iPod speaker system. Most of them are pretty straightforward: Plug the iPod in to the 30-pin dock connector and press "Play."
Check out these speakers as selected by Cnet.com
Read more about it by clicking here.
The Google Phone Is No Game-Changer
EngadgetIn an early and in-depth review of the Nexus One, Engadget describes the world's first Google-branded smartphone as a "sleek, streamlined phone that can easily go toe-to-toe with the iPhone 3GSs, Pres, and Droids of the world." Still, can it live up to all the hype?
Well, "It's clear that Google and (the phone's manufacturer) HTC made strides to bring an Android handset into the same realm of base desirability that Apple's halo device occupies," and "for the most part, they've succeeded." Overall, however, "The Nexus One is at its core just another Android smartphone," Engadget writes. "It's a particularly good one, don't get us wrong -- certainly up there with the best of its breed -- but it's not in any way the Earth-shattering, paradigm-skewing device the media and community cheerleaders have built it up to be."
Read more about it by clicking here.
At CES: Waiting For The Other Shoe To Drop
Media PostRegardless of what news might come out of Cupertino, CA, Andrew Eisner,
director of content for consumer electronics shopping site Retrevo.com, tells Marketing Daily this year's tradeshow will likely introduce several products that will pique people's interest. At the top of the list: 3-D television.
"The success of 'Avatar' is going to carry over into television," Eisner says. "It's going to mean everyone will be buying new televisions and new DVD players and new cables."
Read more about it by clicking here.
The Future of TV: Internet Connection
The Wall Street JournalDozens of TV nets, retailers and gadget makers are entering what's called the "over the top" TV market, with every reason to innovate in competition with each other. The toughest hurdle has been connecting the television to a potentially bottomless supply of Internet programming. Coming this year are TVs with direct Internet connections, which could change things fast. Of note is Best Buy's recent announcement that every Web-connected TV it sells will soon come with a subscription to a Best Buy library of entertainment. Sony has similar plans. Think Wal-Mart, Blockbuster and Disney won't be in the hunt?
Ditto the cablers, which are burnishing a concept called "TV Everywhere" in hopes of satisfying your appetite for on-demand TV. The losers won't just be cable and satellite's existing business models. The losers will be Verizon and AT&T. Over-the-air broadcasters, now that they have multiple, crystalline hi-def digital channels at their disposal, may prove the best way to deliver live programming over a given geographical area.
Read more about it by clicking here.
GAGA STAGE
Lady Gaga told MTV News the stage on her revamped Monster Ball Tour for 2010 will be "four times the size of the one we're on now and conceptually, it's completely different" and that Danish popsters Alphabeat will be her new opening act.
TYLER BACK IN RE-HAB
If you haven't already heard, Steven Tyler checked himself into a rehab facility over holidays due to his addiction to pain killers.
VAN HALEN GUITAR HERO, BUT NO SAMMY
For Van Halen fans, it's like the Sammy Hagar era never existed. Activision has released Guitar Hero Van Halen, featuring 25 of the group's greatest hits, but none of the hits that
featured Hagar as the group's lead singer (also absent: longtime bassist Michael Anthony.) The game also includes 19 tracks from other musical artists, including Queens of the Stone Age, Weezer, the Offspring and Queen
THRILLER IN LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
Michael Jackson's "Thriller" video has been added to the Library of Congress' National Film Registry. The 525 films in the registry have been deemed "works of enduring importance toAmerican culture," according to the Hollywood Reporter.
AND SPEAKING OF MICHAEL JACKSON
The new year kicked off with a potentially new unearthed Michael Jackson song. A snippet of a track called "Another Day," reportedly sung by the King of Pop, hit the Web over New Year's weekend. "Another Day" appears to be Jackson's version of Lenny Kravitz's "Storm," a song that appeared on the rocker's 2004 album "Baptism" and
featured a guest spot by Jay-Z. The Huffington Post writes that "Another Day" was reportedly a duet between Jackson and Kravitz, but Kravitz doesn't seem to appear on the 90-second snippet. "Another Day" appears to have emerged via Jackson fan site MJ Star.
MACCA NY TRAX TO ROCK BAND
McCartney's live "Good Evening, New York City" will be added to the Rock Band and LEGO Rock Band marketplace as downloadable content. The "New York Pack 01? will feature "Band on the Run," "Jet" and "Sing the Changes," all taken from McCartney's epic shows at New York's new home of the Mets, Citi Field.
KE$HA TOPS GAGA FOR DOWNLOADS IN ONE WEEK
Singer Ke$ha has set a new chart record by selling 610,000 digital downloads of her song "TiK ToK" according to Nielsen Soundscan. The tune tops Lady Gaga's "Just Dance" as
the most downloaded song in a one-week period for a female artist.
GRAMMY INFO
Green Day and Dave Matthews Band, Pink and the Zac Brown Band were added as performers at the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards, which will air live from Los Angeles' Staples Center on January 31st. Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, the Black Eyed Peas, Maxwell and Lady Antebellum will appear on the show as well.
YOKO'S STORY
Yoko Ono has announced that she will be writing her autobiography about her life with John Lennon over the next five years.
PASSING
Willie Mitchell, the Memphis producer whose percussive, string-and-horn-tinged R&B sound shaped '70s hits by such artists as Al Green and Ann Peebles, died Tuesday. He was 81. Mitchell had been having health problems and went into cardiac arrest in December, according to his grandson, Lawrence.
Quotes of the week
"He came over to play bass on another track called 'Peace Dream,' and he heard 'Walk With Me' and said, 'I think I have something for this, gimme a pair of cans and I'll be on the mic,'" Starr says. "And then he just did what he did and enhanced it 100%."
-- Ringo Starr taking about fellow ex-Beatle Paul McCartney contributing to his new album 'Y Not.'"I'm so happy to be back in the studio making new music ... it's funny how so many rappers get worse as their careers stretch out, but true poets get better ... we will follow in the footsteps of Maya Angelou, Gil Scott Heron and Nina Simone. Their work improved with time."
-- Kanye West (egotistically) blogging."I've been helping Eminem over the last 18 months and he's doing brilliantly. I'm there if people want my help. If people ask for help, you tell them where to go, but there's no point advising people if they don't want to do it."
-- Elton John, on nursing his longtime friend Eminem back tosobriety to BBC Radio"If only greed and ignorance could sequester carbon, Bono could FINALLY save the planet."
-- Cory Doctorow, a blogger and journalist noted for his study of file-sharing policies, on Bono's recent comments suggesting Internet Service Providers were "reverse Robin Hoods" benefiting from the music industry's lost profits. (Bono also hinted that China's efforts prove that tracking net content is possible)
THE RADIO INTERVIEW on 'THE AMERICAN PERSPECTIVE' - From newsblaze.com
"Steve Meyer is on the front line of global music sales and distribution which he expects will soar to pocket-bursting levels. What's more, he shares his insight and ingenuity with us. Steve gives us both historical perspective and futuristic vision as he chats with Judy about the love of his work, trends of the business and his personal points of view about success, happiness and blending life with the lust for life. Steve joins Judy and helps us discover the thrill of having it all with a sense of balance and purpose. "
You can listen to an interview I did with Judy Piazza of 'The American Perspective' by clicking here: (It runs about 15 minutes)
http://www.thesop.org/index.php?id=10306.
The Blogs
Check out Jerry Del Colliano's (the founder of INSIDE RADIO) daily blog, by clicking here: http://www.insidemusicmedia.blogspot.comWebsite
Check out attorney Ray Beckerman's website at: http://recordingindustryvspeople.blogspot.com where he prints news about the RIAA's ongoing activities
TinyURL
Check out www.tinyurl.com where you can make a smaller URL that will work for any webpage you wish to link to or reference. (As you can see, I'm using it in my news stories above!)
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