TV has been implementing shorter commercials over the past three years. The traditional commercial lengths of 30 and 60 seconds are being replaced by 15’s and 10’s, according to a study from Nielsen.
Nielsen’s 2017 “Commercial & Advertising Update” shows that “commercials of non-traditional lengths have been increasing over time.” The study shows that 6% of all commercials do not fall in the common lengths of 10, 15, 30 or 60 seconds. In 2014, only 2% of spots outside the normal lengths aired on TV. Sara Fisher of Axios wrote that Fox debuted six-second ads during this year’s Teen Choice Awards.
The change in commercial lengths could be the result of trying to catch the eye of Millennial viewers. Axios cites Adobe’s Media Habits Survey which said between 34%-49% of TV viewers are constantly using another screen—phone, tablet or computer—during commercial breaks. The study also noted that 79% of Millennials are distracted by other devices during TV commercial breaks either “most of the time” or “all of the time.”
Radio could also benefit from shorter ad lengths, as media strategist and researcher Mark Ramsey pointed out in a Feb. blog post. Ramsey conducted a study that said radio listeners were “very likely” to pay attention to an ad that was five seconds in length. A fifteen-second spot was the second highest selected option.
“The world is moving to shorter ad formats because that’s where consumer demands are driving us,” Ramsey said in the post. All options ranked higher than a 30-second commercial in Ramsey’s study.
According to Nielsen, 30-second commercials still are the most popular advertising form for TV, with 49% of all commercials aired falling in the category. While it’s still tops, the amount of 30-second ads has steadily decreased over the years as the shorter spot length options increased. In 2014 61% of all commercials aired on TV were 30 seconds; in 2015 it was 59%. The past two years have seen the biggest drops, down to 51% in 2016 and now to the current 49% mark.
The spot length that saw the biggest increases over the same period of time are 15 second ads. In 2014, 29% of commercials aired were at the 15 seconds in length. As of the first half of 2017 that number is now at 36%—a 7% increase. Ten-second ads, which in 2014 accounted for 2% of total commercials aired, are now at 5%. Relatively unchanged since 2014 are the amount of 60-second commercials, which was at 6% in 2014 and now stands at 5%.
The Nielsen study also found that the average primetime commercial minutes per hour on broadcast television is at 14:37, while cable TV channels are at 16:08, over the time period of Sept. 2016-July 2017.
