Media Center: Press Release
7 Out of 10 People who Own a DVR Say They Can’t Live Without It According to NDS
Survey
Highlights:
According to the NDS DVR Report, an international survey of over 1,000 DVR owners:
- Owners rank the DVR the second most essential household technology
item they cannot live without, beaten only by the mobile phone
- Asked to rank the relative importance of a variety of household
appliances, DVR owners ranked the DVR as the third most indispensable
item after the washing machine and the microwave oven
- DVR owners with partners say that having a DVR makes for
a happier home life
- 89% of Americans, 81% of British, 80% of Australians and
78% of Italians all reported that the DVR has improved how
much they enjoy watching television
LONDON, UK – September 3, 2008 – More than
70% of DVR owners say that they cannot live without their DVR,
according to a new survey commissioned by NDS,
the leading provider of technology solutions for digital pay-TV.
NDS is the world leader in DVR technology. Over 18 pay-TV operators
located all over the world have chosen NDS solutions to bring
the unique capabilities and flexibility of the DVR to their subscribers,
and there are more than 13.1 million NDS-powered DVRs in households
around the world today.
NDS wanted to know how DVRs are changing people’s lives.
The statistics and trends detailed in the NDS DVR Report demonstrate
the importance of the DVR’s role in the lives of consumers
of all ages.
NDS XTV™ is a complete end-to-end solution with built-in
VideoGuard® conditional access. It is the only DVR solution
that has been designed from the ground up to fit the requirements
of pay-TV operators worldwide to build and maintain subscriber
satisfaction, increase ARPU and reduce churn. NDS' unique and
patented RASP (Random Access to Scrambled Content Protocol) technology
enables encrypted channels to be recorded and stored on the disk
and provides heightened security by ensuring that decryption
and conditional access (CA) business controls take place at the
time of viewing, rather than at the time of recording. XTV deployments
offer simultaneous recording of different channels, secure and
addressable delivery of over the air “remote recording” commands
and environmental power management, including an auto-standby
feature.
According to the survey, which asked respondents to rank relative
importance of a list of household appliances, apart from the
washing machine and the microwave oven, no other household item
was deemed more essential than the DVR in today’s homes.
Intriguingly, Italians surveyed also ranked the hairdryer higher
than a DVR. And when it comes to essential technology gadgets,
the DVR is second only to the mobile phone as the item they can’t
live without. Intriguingly, the vast majority of respondents
would rather give up their landline phone, dishwasher, radio
and MP3 player than their DVR.
| Of eight popular pieces of today’s household items – which
four have become a vital part of your life and which could you live without?
(Other four items were a coffee maker, dishwasher, strimmer and blender) |
DVR |
Washing Machine |
Micro-Wave |
Hairdryer |
| United States |
62% |
97% |
86% |
31% |
| United Kingdom |
70% |
95% |
71% |
46% |
| Italy |
59% |
94% |
67% |
61% |
| Australia |
67% |
94% |
86% |
34% |
Of eight popular pieces of today’s household technology– which
four have become a vital part of your life and which could you live without?
(Other
four items were an iPod, home theatre system, photo printer
and games console) |
DVR |
Mobile Phone |
Radio |
Landline |
| United States |
81% |
92% |
52% |
42% |
| United Kingdom |
78% |
80% |
62% |
70% |
| Italy |
73% |
95% |
62% |
53% |
| Australia |
75% |
88% |
46% |
49% |
The survey also reveals that over 60% of DVR owners with a partner
felt that having a DVR had improved their relationship. In the
US, UK and Australia, respondents attributed this improvement
to having the ability to watch their own programmes while sharing
their favourites with each other. Surveyed Italians feel that
their improved relationship happiness is due to the DVR allowing
them to plan their evening’s viewing better.
| If you have a DVR, has it improved your relationship
with your partner? |
YES |
NO |
| United States |
79% |
21% |
| United Kingdom |
62% |
38% |
| Italy |
78% |
22% |
| Australia |
78% |
22% |
More than three quarters of DVR owners with families in the
US, Italy and Australia also feel that having a DVR has improved
their family relationships, eliminating arguments over TV and
allowing for the whole family to join the dinner table. In Britain,
the figure was around two-thirds.
| If you have a DVR, has it improved your
family relationships? |
YES |
NO |
| United States |
81% |
19% |
| United Kingdom |
64% |
36% |
| Italy |
82% |
18% |
| Australia |
76% |
24% |
Other report highlights
The statistics and trends detailed in the NDS DVR Report demonstrate
how important a role DVRs now play in the lives of consumers.
Other key findings from the survey include:
- DVR owners watch on average slightly more than four hours
(4.075) of recorded and live television a day
- 89% of Americans, 81% of British, 80% of Australians and
78% of Italians all reported that the DVR has improved how
much they enjoy watching television
- Nearly 61% think that a DVR is much easier to operate than
a video cassette recorder
- Almost 58% find that they are watching more interesting TV
programmes since getting a DVR
- More than three out of four agree that since getting a DVR
they are more likely to find something to watch, when they
want to watch TV
- Many respondents with only one DVR are keen to get a second
one: 30% of Brits, 52% of Americans, 49% of Australians and
57% of Italians
Commenting on the survey, Nigel Smith, Chief Marketing Officer
of NDS, said: “We commissioned this consumer survey to
celebrate the milestone announcement that NDS technology now
resides in over 13 million DVRs worldwide, making us the global
leader in this market. The survey results show just how fast
the DVR has become an indispensable part of people’s lives
in the UK, US, Italy and Australia. It’s one of those technologies
that, once tried, has you wondering how you coped before.”
Smith added: “At NDS we invest heavily in R&D to ensure
that our technology is always ahead of the pack. Our next-generation
DVR technologies, currently in development, will enhance the
end user viewing experience still further, while also providing
incremental revenue streams for our customers.”
Research
methodology
The survey was carried out by Consumer Analysis Group in July
2008. The survey involved 1,012 people aged 18-70 years old who
have a DVR at home. Consumers in the UK (256), US (252), Italy
(251) and Australia (253), were questioned using a mix of phone,
street and online interviews.
For a copy of the complete NDS DVR Survey please click
here or email Lindsey Lee at llee@breakawaycom.com.
###
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About NDS
NDS Group plc (NASDAQ: NNDS), a majority owned subsidiary of
News Corporation, supplies open end-to-end digital technology
and services to digital pay-television platform operators and
content providers. See www.nds.com for
more information about NDS.
Read about the latest developments at NDS and in the Pay TV
industry in World Vision
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###
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This document may contain certain “forward-looking
statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on management’s
views and assumptions regarding future events and business performance
as of the time the statements are made. Actual results may differ
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detailed information about these and other factors that could affect
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and Exchange Commission. Any “forward-looking statements” included
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and we do not have any obligation, nor do we undertake, to publicly
update any “forward-looking statements” to reflect
subsequent events or circumstances, except as required by law.
For further information:
| NDS |
|
| Cynthia Ritchie |
T: +44 (0)20 8476 8378 |
| Director, Corporate Communications |
critchie@nds.com |
| |
|
| Breakaway Communications for NDS |
T: +1 212 616 6006 |
| Kelly Fitzgerald, Managing Partner |
kfitz@breakawaycom.com |
| |
|
| Breakaway Communications Europe for NDS |
T: +44 (0)7766 447897 |
| Lindsey Lee |
llee@breakawaycom.com |