Long has the Nielsen ratings box wickedly dominated television’s every season lineup. For decades now it’s mercilessly hacked fledgling TV shows to blood riddled bits for no reason what-so-ever.  Except that they were under performing. King Nielsen’s evil reign may have it’s end in sight.

Or have it’s evil reign joined by digital video recorders (DVR), depending on how you see it.

The folks down at Nielsen Media Research laboratory finally have
something not-enraging to report, and nobody’s more not-enraged than
hecklerspray.

Starting next week – yes, that soon – the Nielsen ratings guys are
going to start counting people’s DVR habits into their studies. Up
until now they’ve supposedly used a magic box that they’ve put in the
homes of the random average American Joe and Jane. Joe and Jane have
each represented several million people, for our example here, let’s
say 10 million. So, if Joe watches something absolutely stomach
churningly awful, like, say How I Met Your Mother (it needed to be
said), then Nielsen reports to the various studio heads that at least
10 million people are watching the aforementioned intellectually
painful half hour.

Yeah, we know, it’s a stupid system. Now though, things should
change up a bit. DVRs are invading more and more homes all the time.
If hecklerspray‘s feeble math skills are correct, over seven million
American households now have a DVR of one brand or another. That’s
just about seven percent of all television-having Stateside homes. 

The DVR technology will not only tell them what you watch during
normal airing hours, but also what you record and how many times you
replay it. That, our TV watching brothers and sisters, is the sweet
smell of revolution on the air. Cult classics may have reached the
point of salvation. For example, advertisers would no doubt love to
have the commercial they payed for once, be replayed by rabid, super-intelligent and often very attractive fans over and over during
repeated watches of Fox’s Arrested Development, or by the
decent-looking supporters of Veronica Mars.

Joe and Jane Nielsen box, you have been effectively stripped of your
might, pack your handkerchief on the end of a stick and start hoofing.
Wait, Jane, we find ourselves quite taken with your feminine wiles,
but Joe, you get the hell out!

Read more:

Nielsen Will Include DVR Use In Ratings - Salon

[story by Shawn Lindseth]