Normally I’m not one to read the NY Times. I generally get my daily news from sites like Digg, Engadget, and Joystiq. Yet, when I saw an article titled “Viewers Fast-Forwarding Past Ads? Not Always” it caught my eye. My friends can tell you that I am a TiVo Whore. I’ve been using it long enough now that I would rather not watch TV than have to watch it with commercials. The SuperBowl is my one exception to that and if you read my previous post you already know my thoughts on that.

According to a survey by Nielsen, DVR owners watch 40 percent of commercials that they could skip over. Are these people crazy? I can understand watching sporting events live. Personally, I prefer to let them start recording for 20 or 30 minutes and then start watching the game so I can fast forward through commercials, but there are cases where watching the game live is better. Other than sporting events, I don’t see any reason to watch normal TV live. Maybe someone can tell me another reason, but I just can’t think of one that explains why 4 out of 10 people who could be fast forwarding commercials are not.

As I think about it now I wonder if there polling methods were flawed. I know half a dozen other people who have a TiVo or DVR from their cable company. None of them watch commercials. Most of them only watch a few TV shows and all of those they record and watch at a later date. The sports fans all let the game start recording and then start watching a bit later. None of them watch commercials. None of them were surveyed for this research either.

Assuming their statistics are correct who are these people who are watching commercials instead of fast forwarding through them? I have finally thought of one reason why people might not be fast forwarding through commercials. They don’t know how. Maybe these people signed up for digital cable to go with their new HDTVs they got for Christmas/SuperBowl and it came with a built in DVR. These are probably the same people who do not know how to set the time on their VCRs. They have the new electronic toys to keep up with their neighbors, but don’t take the time to learn how they actually work. I’m thinking I could make a lot of money starting a class that teaches them how to use their remote controls. So, if you know anyone who watches commercials instead of fast forwarding through them please shoot me an email or leave me a comment so I can get in touch with them about my new class: How To Use A Remote 101.