News

A TV-Set? Not a necessity anymore!

MEDIA: More and more Americans could do without a TV-set in their household.

[Foto: John Atherton ¦ Source: wikipedia]

Only 42 percent of Americans regard a TV-set as a necessity of life. A year ago, this score was at 52 percent, back in 2006, even at 64 percent. This dramatic decline is demonstrated by a new study of the American ‘Pew Research Center’ which covers demographic trends. For the study, titled 'The Fading Glory of The Television and Telephone', consumers are asked to rank things of their everyday life as “necessity of life† or as “luxury, you could do without†.

 

The TV-set only ranks at eight place. Leaders in the ranking are the car, which 86 percent regard as a necessity, followed by the landline telephone (62 percent) and the clothes dryer (59 percent). Not only the TV-set faces a strong headwind: Landline telephone, clothes dryer, microwave and air conditioning show dramatic declines in the people’s opinion on their necessity since 2006. The fact that mobile telephones, high speed internet and flat screen TV/HDTV can hold or raise their rates does not come as a surprise.

 

While Americans recognize the good, old TV-set less and less as a necessity of life, they buy more and more TV-sets. Pew Research concludes that TV as medium and the TV-set as device of TV consumption still are the best way for Americans to gain instant access to a wide range of entertainment.