Record: average home gets 119 channels

Here's a big part of why broadcast ratings are down: The number of television channels received by the average U.S. home has hit a new record high of 119.

The ongoing surge of cable channels makes the five broadcast networks like the Spartan warriors of "300" -- a small band trying to hold off wave after wave of attacks from a less-skillful yet more numerous and relentless enemy. Sooner or later, "Lost" and "CSI" get worn down by the fifth repeat airing of "Gene Simmons: Family Jewels" and "10 Years Younger" (disclaimer: yes, obviously, some cable hits like "Mad Men" creatively trounce most broadcast shows).

Some other fun facts from the just-released Nielsen Media Research study...

--  As the number of channels available to a household increases, so does the number of channels watched.  In 2007, the average household tuned to 16 channels for at least 10 minutes per week.

-- The average U.S. TV home has 2.5 people and 2.8 television sets.

-- Despite all the talk of reality booming, dramas still dominate the English language broadcast networks program lineups, comprising 40% of the primetime programs -- an increase of seven programs from last year. Variety programs comprise 23%. 

--  61% of homes have wired cable hook-ups (down from a high of 68% in 2000) and 27% have satellite or specialized antenna systems to receive television signals, up from 19% in 2005.

Comments

[StarLink]

That's a lot of channels. I still love my TIVO and have seen there are about 10 channels where I watch 95% of my shows.