Analysis of Shifting TV Viewing Habits and Audience Preferences

This essay examines the significant shifts in television viewing habits, exploring how technology and audience preferences have reshaped the media landscape. It highlights the decline of real-time TV viewing due to the rise of devices like DVDs and the internet, enabling content consumption on various platforms such as mobile phones and laptops. The essay discusses how the availability of on-demand content has led to a more selective approach to TV viewing, with viewers prioritizing convenience and customized content packages. It also analyzes the integration of media companies and the changing social dynamics of TV viewing, moving from communal experiences to individual consumption. Furthermore, the essay notes the shift in content from purely entertainment to informative programming, particularly for younger audiences. The essay concludes that these changes are beneficial, allowing viewers to balance entertainment with busy schedules, and references several scholarly articles to support its claims.

Running head: TV 0
Screen: Small, Medium and Large

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ESSAY:
Television of the small screen is the very important part of individual’s life since years.
Television is the very popular media that is entertaining the people for long time. It is not only
the medium for entertainment but it also provides information regarding the day today activities
that re happening around the world. It has been analysed that there are many shifts in the habits
of the television viewers have experienced1. The way people watch the television, the shows they
watch and the overall culture of television viewing has changed a lot.
The first shift that has been analysed is in regards with real time watching of the television
shows. The popularity of watching the TV content with shifted times has increased with time.
The major reason for the same is the introduction of new external devices such as DVD’s,
VCD’s,VCR’s etc. the availability of these devices in the market allow the users to watch the
programmes or the films that are not broadcasted on television or can be seen on different
timings the broadcasted. The second shift that has been observed in the viewing pattern of the
people is because of the availability of the internet. Internet allows the users not only to watch
the broadcasted programs on television itself but also allow them to watch the same on mobile
phones, computers, laptops etc. the content is same but the screen has changes. Now the people
does not have to be dependent on television to view their favourite serials but just need a handy
devices like mobile phones with internet connection to see the same content that too in live
format2.
There is a great confusion now days between watching TV and watching the TV content. This is
because the same TV content can be seen by the viewers on different device that too with live
streaming format. Most of the young ones or the young viewers of television are turning away
from the fixed television facility and becoming more selective for the programs they watch on
television3. In today’s era, people believes in spending their time in productive things and do not
1 Kahlor and Eastin, “Television's role”, 215-231.
2 Bondad-Brown et al., “Influences on TV”, 471-493.
3 Jago, et al, "Screen-viewing”, 525-529.

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have much time for their entertainment. Thus, the viewers prefer to watch their favourite
programs in their free time. This constraint also results in development of customized cable
packages that are available for the people who watch only some kind of programs. When the
tradition TV viewing practices of real time TV watching has been considered, it has been
estimated that the time the people spent on watching television is reducing with time. This is
because how the people are not adjusting their schedule according the timings of their favourite
TV program but setting the time of the program as per their empty schedule by using other
medium to watch the broadcasted program later4.
As far as the media industry is concerned, it has been analysed that the media companies are
integrating their functions and merging into each other’s territories. It has been realised that
watching TV was earlier the moment of social gatherings because all the family members used to
sit together and watch the television. However, these gadgets like mobile phones and laptops
allow the people to watch their shows separately as per their free time5. Every individual owns
their phones and thus watch their programs in that phone makes them isolated from others. As
far as the content shown on the television is considered, it has been analysed that the content has
become more informative than entertaining these days6. Earlier when children used to watch the
TV, parents restrict them for the same but today TV has become the medium to get so much
information. Children can learn many things from channels like discover, NetGeo etc.
It has been concluded from the discussion that the culture of TV viewing and the preferences of
audiences have changed a lot since years. Different types of shifts have been observed in the
pattern of watching. Introduction of external devices has changed the scene of watching TV at
real time and even the non-broadcasted shows can be seen on those devices. As per the overall
analysis, it can be observed that the shift is beneficial for the viewers according to their busy
schedule and this helps them to be entertained without compromising with their important work.
4 Wakamiya, Ryong Lee, and Sumiya, "Towards better TV viewing rates”, 39.
5 Csikszentmihalyi, "Toward a psychology of optimal experience.", 209-226
6 Andaya, et al., "The association between family meals”, 308-315.

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References:
Andaya, Abegail A., Elva M. Arredondo, John E. Alcaraz, Suzanne P. Lindsay, and John P.
Elder. "The association between family meals, TV viewing during meals, and fruit, vegetables,
soda, and chips intake among Latino children." Journal of nutrition education and behavior 43,
no. 5 (2011): 308-315.
Bondad-Brown, Beverly A., Ronald E. Rice, and Katy E. Pearce. "Influences on TV viewing and
online user-shared video use: Demographics, generations, contextual age, media use,
motivations, and audience activity." Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media 56, no. 4
(2012): 471-493.
Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly. "Toward a psychology of optimal experience." In Flow and the
foundations of positive psychology, pp. 209-226. Springer Netherlands, 2014.
Jago, Russell, Angie Page, Karsten Froberg, Luis B. Sardinha, Lena Klasson-Heggebø, and Lars
B. Andersen. "Screen-viewing and the home TV environment: the European Youth Heart
Study." Preventive medicine 47, no. 5 (2008): 525-529.
Kahlor, LeeAnn, and Matthew S. Eastin. "Television's role in the culture of violence toward
women: A study of television viewing and the cultivation of rape myth acceptance in the United
States." Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media55, no. 2 (2011): 215-231.
Wakamiya, Shoko, Ryong Lee, and Kazutoshi Sumiya. "Towards better TV viewing rates:
exploiting crowd's media life logs over Twitter for TV rating." In Proceedings of the 5th
International Conference on Ubiquitous Information Management and Communication, p. 39.
ACM, 2011.