This fall, 38% of young-adult prime-time viewing on the major networks (and 23% of all viewing) consists of previously recorded shows, Nielsen says. That's up from nearly zero a decade ago.
"This year has really sort of been the tipping point that we've been expecting," says Leslie Moonves, chairman of CBS Corp., which owns CBS, Showtime and half of CW. Increasingly, "overnight ratings don't mean anything."
Nearly two months into the new TV season, ratings for three of the four big networks are down 10% to 30% from last fall. One cause for alarm is that overall TV usage by young adults ages 18 to 24 is down 9% since this time last year, more than any other age bracket.
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