NEW YORK, NY — According to Nielsen Online’s new audience measurement service, men and women relate to online video very differently. Although the service does not track adult video, understanding behavioral patterns can help video purveyors maximize their revenues.December statistics from VideoCensus, the new service, indicate video streams at broadcast network TV websites were nearly two times more likely to be viewed by women ages 18-34 than men (22-percent vs. 12-percent at both home and work). For the top four consumer-generated media (CGM) websites, streams were two and a half times more likely to be viewed by men 18-34 than women (27-percent vs. 11-percent).

Among network TV websites, there was relatively low viewer overlap, according to VideoCensus. Most consumers of both sexes were loyal to their favorite networks (ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox), straying from their favorite networks’ websites only occasionally. For example, only 24-percent of viewers at NBC.com also viewed video content at ABC.com.

Among CGM websites, however, most viewers of both sexes also watched video content on YouTube. Eighty-four percent of regular MySpace users also viewed video on YouTube, 93-percent of Veoh viewers also visited YouTube and 87-percent of Break.com users reported also being regular viewers of YouTube.

“Network websites are destinations for fans to deepen their experience, said Michael Pond, a media analyst with Nielsen Online. “They go to see favorite scenes, episodes, and outtakes. These viewers are very loyal and engaged, and the website is a place to become immersed in the program.

“With shorter clips and a viral nature, CGM websites are much more about discovery, and consumers are likely to view content on more than one,” he added.

Nielsen Online also reported streaming at the top network TV websites was most popular during lunchtime hours (noon to 2:00 pm). At CGM websites, however, the most popular time for viewing was during late-night hours on the weekend, between 11:00 pm and 6:00 am.

“These results indicate that the largest appetite for streaming broadcast content is during the noontime hours, when viewers take a break from work to catch up on the shows they enjoy,” Pond said. “Primetime visitors to network websites primarily enhance their TV viewing experience with features like online voting, Web-only promotions and other program-specific content, although there is some interest in streaming network content during the evening as well.”

Among other statistics uncovered by VideoCensus:
• 116.7 million unique viewers, or 73-percent of active Web users, watched approximately 6.2 billion video streams in December 2007.
• The average viewer spent nearly two hours and 10 minutes watching online video content during the month of December.
• Each viewer watched nearly 54 video streams during the month.
• The No. 1 video site in December was YouTube, with 2.6 billion streams during the month, followed by Yahoo! with 371.9 million streams and Fox Interactive Media with 364.1 million streams. ESPN’s video content ranked sixth, and Google’s ranked ninth.

“The growth projections for both online video consumption and video advertising revenue are phenomenal,” said Dave Osborn, vice president of video measurement and media products at Nielsen Online.