# Do TiVo recordings count toward tv show ratings? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 6, 2009, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500 "2009-03-06T06:56:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Crocodiles\_And\_Boulevards](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ee7513/32.png) [@Crocodiles\_And\_Boulevards](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crocodiles_And_Boulevards)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2009, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/1 "2009-03-06T06:56:57Z")
When I record a show on my DVR, does that contribute to their ratings? Just curious. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2009, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/2 "2009-03-06T06:58:22Z")
Not the Neilson ratings, which are still done by having people fill out a booklet. TiVo (the company) keeps aggregate data of how many people are watching a given show, but last I heard this data isn’t integrated in any way with Neilson. ---
**Author:** ![Alex\_Dubinsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dbc845/32.png) [@Alex\_Dubinsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alex_Dubinsky)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2009, 7:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/3 "2009-03-06T07:06:27Z")
Of course the marketing monkeys keep track. There’s something like a “live plus seven” metric that measures people delay-viewing it the same week, etc. The monkeys can also try to claim that if their show is being tivo’d a lot, then all the hip people watch it. ---
**Author:** ![Alex\_Dubinsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dbc845/32.png) [@Alex\_Dubinsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alex_Dubinsky)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2009, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/4 "2009-03-06T07:08:58Z")
[http://tvbythenumbers.com/2008/09/22/huge-demo-gains-for-gossip-girl-cw-wlive-plus-seven-dvr-viewing/5256](http://tvbythenumbers.com/2008/09/22/huge-demo-gains-for-gossip-girl-cw-wlive-plus-seven-dvr-viewing/5256) > [@](#): > > September 22, 2008 (Burbank, CA) - The second season premiere of “Gossip Girl” and the series debut of “90210″ each added over a third more viewers in target demographics with Live-Plus Seven Day DVR viewing included. “America’s Next Top Model” gained over 50% more viewers in key demos once Live-Plus Seven DVR data was factored in. As you can see, the TiVo crowd can make a huge contribution, but the concept, for some reason, is still not the mainstream measure and more like an afterthought. That reason is probably that people who delay-view shows skip the ads. ---
**Author:** ![Stan\_Shmenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/94ad74/32.png) [@Stan\_Shmenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stan_Shmenge)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2009, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/5 "2009-03-06T07:18:08Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > Not the Neilson ratings, which are still done by having people fill out a booklet. TiVo (the company) keeps aggregate data of how many people are watching a given show, but last I heard this data isn’t integrated in any way with Neilson. Cite? Don’t they use more sophisticated techniques by now? ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2009, 8:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/6 "2009-03-06T08:09:08Z")
Woops, I was only partly right. > [@Wikipedia](#): > > Nielsen Television Ratings are gathered in one of two ways, both of them adaptations of the company’s earliest methods. One involves the use of viewer “diaries,” in which a target audience self-records its viewing (or listening) habits. By targeting various demographics, the assembled statistical models promise an accurate rendering of the audiences of any given show, network, programming hour, and the like. A more technologically sophisticated system has used Set Meters, which are small devices connected to every television in selected homes. These devices gather the viewing habits of the home and transmit the information nightly to Nielsen through a “Home Unit” connected to a phone line. I remember people who are nielson viewers reporting that they still recorded their entries in a diary recently. I guess that method is still out there. ---
**Author:** ![David\_B](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/51bf81/32.png) [@David\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_B)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2009, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/7 "2009-03-06T12:41:44Z")
Nielsen has some people fill out diaries – though I believe that’s just the short-timers. (For example, I was a Nielsen house for a couple weeks, a year or two ago.) Then, if you are picked to be a long-timer, you get electronic monitoring of what you watch. However, I’m not sure if electronic monitoring works on recorded shows (TiVo or VCR), so even those with monitoring may have to fill out diaries to cover those. ---
**Author:** ![yoyodyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a9a28c/32.png) [@yoyodyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yoyodyne)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2009, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/8 "2009-03-06T19:07:26Z")
I filled out a Neilsen diary recently, it had a section for recording DVR usage. ---
**Author:** ![Crocodiles\_And\_Boulevards](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ee7513/32.png) [@Crocodiles\_And\_Boulevards](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crocodiles_And_Boulevards)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2009, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/9 "2009-03-06T19:43:53Z")
Thanks for all the informative answers! Quite a bit of it goes over my head, though 😉 While you guys are here, is there any concern among advertisers and the whole television market that DVR-technology will become so prevalent that commercials will be skipped over by unacceptably large numbers of people? ---
**Author:** ![CapnPitt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/edb3f5/32.png) [@CapnPitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CapnPitt)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2009, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/10 "2009-03-06T19:58:43Z")
I should be getting my Nielsen diary in the mail any day now. I’m supposed to fill it out for a week and then mail it back. In the phone interview they asked specifically about whether or not I had a DVR. I don’t know if that will make a difference. I’ll let you know when I get the diary. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2009, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/11 "2009-03-06T20:02:52Z")
Yes, there is concern that DVRs mean people skip commercials. Also people like me often switch to another channel when a commercial is on - that is another problem. I also skip though ads when I watch a DVR recording. ---
**Author:** ![BlinkingDuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eada6e/32.png) [@BlinkingDuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlinkingDuck)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2009, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/12 "2009-03-06T20:32:00Z")
> [@Crocodiles\_And\_Boulevards](#): > > Thanks for all the informative answers! Quite a bit of it goes over my head, though 😉 > > While you guys are here, is there any concern among advertisers and the whole television market that DVR-technology will become so prevalent that commercials will be skipped over by unacceptably large numbers of people? Yes. Which is why you are/will see more creative/irritating ways of doing commercials…like the stuff that crawls along the bottom of the screen…commericals within the show itself (like product placement) but will get more frequent and obvious and all the ideas they haven’t come up with yet :). ---
**Author:** ![ScatteredFrog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8c91f0/32.png) [@ScatteredFrog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ScatteredFrog)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2009, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/13 "2009-03-06T22:03:36Z")
My wife did some research on this topic not too long ago and found that TiVo is indeed included in ratings – what really counts is if people watch the recording within 24 hours of the original airing. ---
**Author:** ![gurujulp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ba9def/32.png) [@gurujulp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gurujulp)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2009, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/14 "2009-03-06T22:10:47Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > Not the Neilson ratings, which are still done by having people fill out a booklet. TiVo (the company) keeps aggregate data of how many people are watching a given show, but last I heard this data isn’t integrated in any way with Neilson. My dad was contacted by Neilson in 1993 and asked to participate with a set-top box. He told them that he would love to, but he didn’t have a television. They were flabbergasted. He bought a TV two weeks later. I am still confused by that. ---
**Author:** ![Cliffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/59ef9b/32.png) [@Cliffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cliffy)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2009, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/15 "2009-03-06T23:58:51Z")
> [@CapnPitt](#): > > I should be getting my Nielsen diary in the mail any day now. I’m supposed to fill it out for a week and then mail it back. In the phone interview they asked specifically about whether or not I had a DVR. I don’t know if that will make a difference. I’ll let you know when I get the diary. I’m reasonably sure it is a violation of your agreement with Nielsen to broadcast this information until some time after you’ve completed the diary. BTW, Nielsen samples TiVo users. TiVo (and presumably other DVR providers) cannot use your viewing information without your consent (although as mentioned, it tracks things in the aggregate). But some number of TiVo users are asked to opt-in. As also mentioned upthread, those users mostly count only if they watch within a limited time. –Cliffy ---
**Author:** ![CapnPitt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/edb3f5/32.png) [@CapnPitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CapnPitt)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/16 "2009-03-09T01:33:39Z")
They didn’t say anything in the phone interview about not broadcasting this information. All they said was to fill out the diary. As far as I know, any agreement is minimal at best, especially given that they didn’t give any small print talk on the phone either. Should I be expecting a subpoena from you Cliffy? ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/17 "2009-03-09T02:15:25Z")
I have met a couple of people with no TV and more with no cable or satellite service. Not sure why but everyone I have met with no TV has been very liberal. I am sure there are conservatives as well who don’t own a TV, I haven’t met any yet. ---
**Author:** ![Cliffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/59ef9b/32.png) [@Cliffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cliffy)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/18 "2009-03-09T15:00:12Z")
> [@CapnPitt](#): > > They didn’t say anything in the phone interview about not broadcasting this information. OK, I could be wrong. I’ve participated in the Arbitron radio ratings program in the past, and there was always a disclaimer in the paperwork saying to keep it quiet until some time had elapsed. (Six months maybe? I don’t remember.) –Cliffy ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/19 "2009-03-09T16:29:46Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > I have met a couple of people with no TV and more with no cable or satellite service. Not sure why but everyone I have met with no TV has been very liberal. I am sure there are conservatives as well who don’t own a TV, I haven’t met any yet. Many members of my family belong to a Christian Holiness sect that doesn’t allow TV viewing. Generally conservative. So my experience is the opposite. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500/20 "2009-03-09T16:54:08Z")
> [@Crocodiles\_And\_Boulevards](#): > > While you guys are here, is there any concern among advertisers and the whole television market that DVR-technology will become so prevalent that commercials will be skipped over by unacceptably large numbers of people? Isn’t that why ads at the bottom of the screen during a TV show have gotten so much more common in recent years? > [@SenorBeef](#): > > TiVo (the company) keeps aggregate data of how many people are watching a given show I heard that TiVo can also track which commercials you fast-forward through and which ones you actually watch. Can they? If they do, is this information shared with the people who make the commercials? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-tivo-recordings-count-toward-tv-show-ratings/488500.md?page=2)