Press release

10/22/2007

TIVO ANNOUNCES RESULTS OF ITS STOP||WATCH™ COMMERCIAL RANKINGS FOR AUGUST

CBS’ Big Brother 8 dominates Top Commercials, TNT’s The Closer
and Fox’s So You Think You Can Dance dominate Top Programs 

ALVISO, Calif. — October 22, 2007 — TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ: TIVO), the creator of and a leader in advertising solutions and television services for digital video recorders (DVRs), today announced its Top Commercial Rankings for August, as viewed by TiVo subscribers.

For the second month in row, TNT claimed several top highest rated program episodes in total viewing with The Closer.  However, similar to the last month, while The Closer dominated the Top Program ratings, none of the commercials that aired during the program made the Top 10.  In fact, nine of the Top 10 commercial spots in August aired during Big Brother 8, which was only the 10^th highest rated program.  In the meantime, Fox’s So You Think You Can Dance continued its consistent summertime Top 10 showing. 

TiVo’s special monthly analysis for August ranked cable and broadcast networks by the percent of Timeshifted viewing for the spring and summer months. The data showed that during the spring, the top five most Timeshifted networks were the top five broadcast.  However, during the summer, three of the top five most Timeshifted networks were cable.

Speaking about the Top Commercial ratings, Todd Juenger, Vice President & General Manager, TiVo Audience Research & Measurement said, “It's safe to say there's no direct correlation between the success of a program and the popularity of the commercials that air during that program.” Mr. Juenger also noted that the change in seasons has impacted viewing habits. Timeshifting and ratings decreased in the summer on broadcast networks and increased on cable networks. 

Percentage of Timeshifted Viewing -- Spring v. Summer

	Spring			Summer
1	CW	60%		USA	52%
2	FOX	57%		FOX	51%
3	CBS	55%		TNT	43%
4	ABC	52%		MTV	43%
5	NBC	49%		CW	40%
6	MTV	49%		CBS	38%
7	DSC	41%		DSC	37%
8	COM	39%		NBC	35%
9	USA	34%		COM	34%
10	NIK	31%		TBS	32%
11	TBS	27%		NIK	32%
12	HGTV	26%		ABC	32%
13	TNT	24%		HGTV	26%
14	CNN	18%		ESPN	22%
15	ESPN	16%		CNN	20%
	Broadcast	55%		Broadcast	41%
	Cable	30%		Cable	36%
	Avg Rating			Avg Rating
	Broadcast	5.9		Broadcast	3.1
	Cable	0.8		Cable	1.0

           

* Spring = Mar/Apr/May

Summer = Jun/Jul/Aug

 

• While ESPN, CNN and HGTV were the least Timeshifted networks across the board, NBC and ABC were the least Timeshifted broadcast networks; the CW and Fox were the most Timeshifted broadcast networks.
• TNT had the biggest difference between seasons with very low Timeshifting during the spring (bolstered by a high proportion of NBA basketball programming), and very high Timeshifting during the summer driven by high rated dramas, such as The Closer.

August -- Top Commercials v. Top Program Episodes (Total Viewing)

 

• The finale episodes of Hell's Kitchen and Big Brother 8 propelled both programs into Top 10 total viewing.
• The nine Top commercial spots that aired during Big Brother 8 was not a result of most viewing being Live, as over 55% of viewing was Timeshifted (typical for broadcast, primetime shows).
• The top commercial, for Universal Studios’ movie Mr. Bean’s Holiday, which was the first spot in the first commercial pod in the August 12 airing of Big Brother 8, claimed almost the same rating as the program (7.7 versus 8.2).

 

August -- Top Commercials v. Top Program Episodes (Timeshifted Viewing)

 

• The top rated programs continue to see a high proportion of Timeshifted viewing, as high as 70% (which is unusual for cable networks – The Closer has audience characteristics typically found on broadcast networks in primetime).
• The OnStar spot from Burn Notice was the only one of the Top 10 Timeshifted spots that ran in a Top 10 Timeshifted programs.
• Big Brother 8 held six top Timeshifted commercial spots, all of which also appeared in the top total viewing commercial ranking.
• Three of the Top 10 Timeshifted spots were for movies, versus only one of the Top 10 overall viewed spots.
• Seven of the Top 10 Timeshifted commercial spots were in the first position in the pod.

August – Least Fast-Forwarded Brand Campaigns

 

 

• It’s August in America – that means football season; the top two Least Fast-Forwarded commercial spots are football themed (and the number six campaign, for DirecTV, is predominately football-oriented as well).
• Automakers and movies continue to show up regularly in the Top Ten; noticeably absent from this months list are pharmaceutical brands.
• Ford and Nissan have both made the top Least Fast-Forwarded list on multiple occasions, and both were also included in last month’s analysis of Least Fast-Forwarded campaigns in the automobile category.
• While the list of Least Fast-Forwarded campaigns, when considering all networks and dayparts, remains surprisingly diverse, several brands are perennially showing up – including Samsung, Tax Masters, Subaru, Head On and Activ.
• Media placement continues to play a central role in the Top 10; all commercial campaigns on this list appeared in lower rated, daytime cable shows.
• If the Top 10 excluded consideration of news and sports networks, such as CNN and ESPN, the list would completely change with all 10 campaigns replaced.

TiVo’s Top Commercial Rankings reports, an industry first, were generated using TiVo’s Stop||Watch service’s unique ability to track consumer viewing behavior on a second-by-second basis, in both Live and Timeshifted viewing context.

Categories tracked using TiVo’s Stop||Watch™ ratings service include standard “Top” lists: Top Total Viewing Commercials compared with Total Viewing of Top Programs; Timeshifted Commercials compared with Timeshifted Programs; and Least Fast-Forwarded Brand Campaigns.

The Stop||Watch ratings service, introduced in February 2007, is offered via an easily sortable database of ratings for nationally run programs and advertisements in primetime and daytime, with data going back to September 2006. Each month the Stop||Watch ratings service will issue the standard “Top” lists as well as special analyses of interest, (e.g. top lists by program genre, network, or product category). Subscribers to the Stop||Watch ratings service include Starcom USA, the Interpublic Group of Companies, Media IQ, MPMA and Crispin Porter + Bogusky.

TiVo Stop||Watch ratings service data is derived from a daily, aggregate, anonymous, stratified random sample of 20,000 TiVo units – from which the second-by-second “clickstream” of behavior and viewership is collected and assessed.  The Stop||Watch service includes data for: Total Viewing, Live Viewing, Timeshifted Viewing (less than 1 hour, 1-6 hours, 6-24 hours, 24-48 hours, 2-7 day, and 7-14 day delay), Program Ratings, Commercial Ratings and a Commercial Viewership Index.  The Stop||Watch service uses ad occurrence data from TNS Media Intelligence to identify commercial spots.  For more information on the TiVo Stop||Watch ratings service, visit https://stopwatch.tivo.com .

 

About TiVo Inc.

Founded in 1997, TiVo (NASDAQ: TIVO) pioneered a brand new category of products with the development of the first commercially available digital video recorder (DVR). Sold through leading consumer electronic retailers, TiVo has developed a brand which resonates boldly with consumers as providing a superior television experience. Through agreements with leading satellite and cable providers, TiVo also integrates its DVR service features into the set-top boxes of mass distributors. TiVo’s DVR functionality and ease of use, with such features as Season Pass™ recordings, WishList® searches, and TiVo® KidZone, have elevated its popularity among consumers and have created a whole new way for viewers to watch television. With a continued investment in its patented technologies, TiVo is revolutionizing the way consumers watch and access home entertainment. Rapidly becoming the focal point of the digital living room, TiVo’s DVR is at the center of experiencing new forms of content on the TV, such as broadband delivered video, music and photos. With innovative features, such as TiVoToGo™ transfers and online scheduling, TiVo is expanding the notion of consumers experiencing “TiVo, TV your way.®” The TiVo® service is also at the forefront of providing innovative marketing solutions for the television industry, including a unique platform for advertisers and audience measurement research. The company is based in Alviso, Calif.

TiVo, Stop||Watch, Season Pass, WishList, Series2, Series3, TiVoToGo, ‘TiVo, TV your way’ and the TiVo Logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of TiVo Inc. or its subsidiaries worldwide. © 2007 TiVo Inc. All rights reserved.