Research

In an apparent rebuff of Nielsen’s local people meter critics, the Federal Trade Commission Wednesday responded to a request from members of Congress to weigh-in on the tumultuous debate surrounding the TV audience measurement service, concluding that Nielsen’s practices were neither “deceptive” nor “anticompetitive” and that the agency saw no need for government regulation of its process.

Americans spend more than 100 hours commuting to work each year, according to American Community Survey (ACS) data released today by the U.S. Census Bureau. This exceeds the two weeks of vacation time (80 hours) frequently taken by workers over the course of a year. For the nation as a whole, the average daily commute to work lasted about 24.3 minutes in 2003.

With a combined purchasing power of more than $700 billion and a population growing by an estimated 1.7 million annually, U.S. Hispanics represent a demographic marketers are belatedly warming up to. Ad spending targeting Hispanics is expected to top $3.6 billion by 2007. Hispanic women, who often function as head of their households, make many of the purchasing decisions for their families.

Hispanics are firing-up their outdoor grills more than ever. While 47 percent of Hispanics grill at least once per week during the grilling season (similar to last year), approximately 23 percent say they are grilling more than last year. In addition to these key findings, the second Weber Hispanic GrillWatch Survey also reveals the following outdoor grilling habits of Hispanics associated with ownership and usage, foods, and entertaining.

NOP World announced results from its Hispanic OmniTel Retail Study revealing where Hispanic Americans are shopping and why.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2001, Hispanics spent 43% more than average on soaps and detergents, and 16% more than average on cleansing and toilet tissues.

Nielsen Media Research made public the report of The Independent Task Force on Television Measurement.

Consumer media habits are changing as people watch video-on-demand services through their cable or satellite provider (10 percent in the past month), access news online (11 percent in the past month) and listen to Internet radio (37 million in the past month), according to a new study by Arbitron Inc. and Edison Media Research.

A survey of nearly 5,000 Mexican migrants who were interviewed while applying for identity cards at Mexican consulates in the United States has found that an overwhelming majority would vote in Mexican elections scheduled for next year if they had the opportunity. The Mexican Congress is now debating a proposal that would permit absentee voting by Mexicans living outside the country for the first time.

NOP World Technology announced results of its mKids Study, revealing that cell phone ownership has topped 16 million among teens and tweens nationwide, with almost half (44%) of 10-18 year olds in the US owning a cell phone.

The Pew Hispanic Center has developed new estimates for the size and key characteristics of the population of foreign-born persons living in the United States without proper authorization using data from the March 2004 Current Population Survey which is conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Labor.