KIDS AND TEENS DRIVE DAYTIME TV VIEWING AND STREAMING IN THE USA

With social distancing orders in place amid the Covid-19 pandemic, parents are relying on TV to provide their children with entertainment as they juggle their work and home duties. Nielsen conducted a study on how kids are depending on TV for entertainment, news, and educational programs. The measurement and data analytics company analyzed TV data across the top 25 LPM+PPM, the top 25 markets measured by local people meters and portable people meters, markets following the statewide orders, compared with total TV usage (PUT+All Usage on TV Connected Devices) from an equivalent period last year. While it’s no surprise that viewing is up across the total population, things get interesting when breaking down by age group and hour of the day. Year-over-year increases in viewing among kids aged 6-11 and teens 12-17 exploded far beyond other age groups, especially during daytime hours, hitting over 300% gains at noon.

Nielsen’s LPM ratings reveal that certain areas of the country with drastically greater gains among school-aged children. Cities in the Northeast increased the most, particularly Washington, D.C., Boston, and Baltimore. Daytime ratings in Washington, D.C., for example, increased over 550% for kids 6-11 and over 400% for teens. When ranking markets based on ratings for both periods, D.C. climbed from No. 23 for kids 6-11 up to No. 1. Philadelphia saw strong increases among kids 6-11, while New York had bigger increases for teens. Central markets such as Dallas and Houston also saw impressive jumps, while gains in West Coast markets were more modest but substantial. The key advertiser age group 25-54 also drove notable gains, suggesting that some working parents occasionally watch with their kids throughout the day. Across LPM markets, New York is leading for P25-54 increases, jumping 19 spots to number three. Philadelphia, Dallas, and Chicago also climbed the list, each of them increasing their rank 9 spots.

The massive spikes result from the closure of schools, leading children to stay home the majority of the time. While many adults outside the home in their work offices and other places of employment, they haven’t been the ones to drive the increases in viewership. The lack of further interest suggests that parents are balancing indoor time activities around the household and remote work. However, the study suggests that the increases aren’t limited to children. There is a surge in demand, with consumers are watching more of everything, including content via TV-connected devices. Streaming and video game console usage has risen, as well as broadcast and cable viewing. Although it differs by age, the data shows that kids ages 6-11 are outpacing all other groups for streaming gains, and teens ages 12-17 provide the biggest boost to broadcast TV viewership. People of all ages, parental statuses, and locations are turning more to the TV during the pandemic. Nielsen notes that “this scenario presents unique opportunities for consumers and what they choose to view and for advertisers to reach this captive audience in new and compelling ways.”