ESPN released a study at the Cabletelevision Advertising Bureau's local sales management conference which essentially stated that DVR's might not exactly herald the end for the status quo stalwarts. In their "study", 57% of so-called "late adopter" households that participated in a DVR study returned them because "they did not want them"
90 of the 157 households returned their DVRs for reasons including:
- Complaints about the installation process
- The cost of DVRs
- The digital set-top devices clashed with or didn't fit into their home furnishings.
Furthermore, of the 67 who kept the magic boxes, there was an "indication that they continued to view TV commercials, even during fast-forward mode."
I'm not going to go into the usual rant about the self-evident self-serving aspects of the study, which just seem too convenient. What I will say however is that the operative and integral phrase is "late adopter." This study was out of context - DVR's and their value proposition are no where near the late adopter stage of the diffusion/adoption curve, so asking 34% of consumers what they think about a ship that has not yet docked at their port is just downright irrelevant and inaccurate.
If anything, the fact that 43% of late adopters elected to keep their DVR's should unequivocally make Madison Avenue more anxious and paranoid.
Thoughts?
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