Study: Viewers Doing More than Watching Games
Solutions Research Group: 72% Using Phone, E-Mail, Text Messaging, or IM During Last Game of NBA Finals
By Jason Braff -- Multichannel News, 7/3/2007 8:47:00 AM
A new Solutions Research Group study showed that seven of 10 young sports viewers are digitally connecting with someone while watching the big game.
Nearly 1,000 sports fans who had watched either the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament championship game, the final round of the Masters Golf Tournament, or the final game of the National Basketball Association Finals were surveyed for the study.
The study found that among viewers 12-34 in age, 72% were talking with someone via phone, e-mail, text messaging, or instant messaging during the final game of the NBA Finals, and 66% of the same age group were communicating while watching the NCAA championship game.
More important, the study also found that 36% of all viewers who were talking with someone while watching a game said they discussed or mentioned in their conversation at least one commercial that aired during the course of the game.
Out of the viewers who were communicating via instant messaging, texting, or cellular phone during the game, 60% of them were able to remember at least one specific advertisement they viewed during the game, compared with 46% among the viewers who did not partake in these activities during the game.
The study also found that viewers 35 and older were three times more likely to watch a final game by themselves and without connecting via technology compared with those under the age of 35.
