Ad-skipping viewers will rise to 22% in next five years says report

The consulting and technology firm said the ad industry is also facing many new challenges through new technology such as videogames and the internet.

Sky+ is the leading PVR in the UK, with around 600,000 units already in use. The company has vowed that it will help advertisers to combat the effects of ad skipping, but admits that an estimated one third of breaks are already fast forwarded.

NTL and Telewest are also expected to introduce their own PVR service by the end of this year. Audience research company The Big Picture estimates that ad-skipping services cost the UK ad industry over £30m a year.

Accenture's report says that sitcoms and movies are the most likely formats to suffer from viewers skipping ads. Sports broadcasts are the least likely to face ad skipping.

Andrew Robertson, chief executive of BBDO Worldwide, was recently quoted as saying that he believes mobile phones and wireless devices will become more important that TV for advertisers wanting to reach their audience. However, he also noted that there may be problems in that people are not used to facing interruptions when using the phone.

Accenture said it expects TV ad revenues to grow an average of 3% annually through 2009, compared with other industry estimates, which average about 6%.

Robert Clauser, a partner with Accenture's media and entertainment practice, said: "This is not saying everyone is going to lose -- there are a lot of opportunities -- but there are a lot of challenges."

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