Almost half of Britons are using the pause and rewind features of personal video recorders to control their TV viewing, according to a new survey from Microsoft’s Connected TV Viewing.
The survey puts down the popularity of digital TV and the PVR to the need to avoid scheduling conflicts. The 48% that claim to have a PVR out of the 2,000 interviewees suggests the group has been slightly over represented, even if the growing popularity of the devices are taken into consideration.
However, despite PVR adoption, one in three digital viewers (31%) still organise their lives based around what’s on the TV, and a hardcore 8% who would turn down a night out rather than miss a favourite show.
Curiously it is the supposedly tech-savvy generation Y (16-24 year olds) that seem most attached to live TV. 42% say they plan their activities around the TV schedule.
Nine out of ten people say the PVR improves their viewing experience while family life has apparently been improved now that there are no longer arguments on what to watch or excuses not to have a family dinner.