[November 20, 2008]

Downloading TV Programs, Watching Video and Making Online Phone Calls Represent Biggest One-Year Internet Activity Increase

NEW YORK, Nov 20, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ --
Downloading TV programs, watching online
videos and making online phone calls posted the biggest year-to-year percent
increase among adult Internet users, according to new data from Mediamark
Research & Intelligence (MRI).
E-mail, news gathering and paying bills online continue to be among the
most widely used Internet activities by U.S. consumers ages 18+, the MRI data
show.
According to responses from MRI's just released Fall 2008 Survey of the
American Consumer, 3.2% of adults said they had downloaded a TV program in the
last 30 days. That represents a year-to-year increase of 141.4%. The number of
adults who reported they watched online video increased 35.4% during the same
period, to a total of 23.3% of the adult population, while 4.0% of respondents
reported they had made an online phone call, an increase of 32.0%.
The Internet activities engaged in by the greatest number of adults were
use of e-mail (74.2%), obtaining news (46%) and paying bills online (39.6%).
These have been popular online activities among adults for several years.
MRI began measuring Internet activities in 1997 and continually adds new
Internet behavior questions to its survey. The fall 2008 data include four new
Internet activities: sharing photos (done by one in four adults in the last 30
days); sending electronic greeting cards (9% of adults); watching a live TV
program online (5.3% of the U.S. adult population); and uploading or adding
video to a Web site (4.1% of adults).

Internet Activities
U.S. Adults with Access to the Internet

Which, if any, of these activities % %
did you do on the Internet in the All Adults Change From
last 30 days? Fall 2008 Fall 2007
Used E-mail 74.2 +5.2
Obtained the Latest News/Current Events 46.0 +9.8
Paid Bills Online 39.6 +15.3
Made a Purchase for Personal Use 37.2 +7.8
Used Instant Messenger 29.7 +23.6
Obtained Financial Information 28.3 +9.6
Obtained Sports News/Information 28.1 +10.6
Shared Photos Through Internet Website 25.4 N/A
Looked for Recipes 24.8 +24.8
Played Games Online 24.6 +8.0
Watched Online Video 23.3 +35.4
Downloaded Music 21.6 +9.6
Made Personal or Business Travel Plans 20.5 +3.6
Obtained Medical Information 19.9 +4.3
Looked up Movie Listings or Show Times 19.7 +16.8
Visited a TV network's or TV show's website 18.7 +15.4
Looked for Employment 15.3 +23.6
Tracked Investments/Traded Stocks,
Bonds or Mutual Funds 13.2 +14.7
Listened to Radio on the Internet 13.1 +10.4
Obtained Information about Real Estate 12.9 +5.4
Made a Purchase for Business Use 11.4 +3.4
Visited Online Blogs 11.0 +17.9
Obtained Information for a New Car Purchase 10.6 No change

Sent an Electronic Greeting Card 9.0 N/A
Looked at TV Listing Online 7.7 +5.9
Obtained Childcare or Parenting Information 5.3 +12.7
Watched A Live TV Program 5.3 N/A
Wrote an Online Blog 4.3 +16.3
Uploaded or Added Video to a Website 4.1 N/A
Made a Phone Call Online 4.0 +32.0
Downloaded a Podcast 3.8 +22.1
Downloaded a TV Program 3.2 +141.4

Source: MRI's Fall 2008 and Fall 2007 Survey of the American Consumer
N/A=New MRI Question; Not asked in Fall '07
Field Dates for MRI's Fall 2008 survey: September 2007 to October 2008

Note: During the personal interview, MRI asks readers of individual
magazines if, as a result of reading that magazine, they visited the
magazine's website. That data are not included in this general Internet
Activities data
"We should not be surprised that relatively new activities such as
downloading TV programs from the Internet have a lower overall usage," said
Anne Marie Kelly, Senior Vice President of Marketing & Strategic Planning.
"What is interesting is that virtually all activities -- including mainstream
ones such as using email-have shown growth in the last year. In fact, just
about one-half of the highlighted activities have enjoyed double-digit
growth."
About MRI....
Founded in 1979, MRI interviews approximately 26,000 U.S. adults in their
homes each year, asking about their use of media, their consumption of
products and their lifestyles and attitudes.
MRI is the country's leading provider of magazine audience and multimedia
research data. The company releases data from Survey of the American Consumer
(adults 18+) twice yearly, in the spring and fall. MRI data have become the
basic media-planning currency for the majority of the media plans that are
created each year by national advertisers and their agencies. The company's
26,000 in-home interviews each year represent the biggest survey of its kind.
MRI Starch, a leader in providing marketing intelligence of print
advertising effectiveness, is a division of MRI.
MRI is part of GfK Group AG, Nuremberg, Germany. For more information,
please visit http://www.mediamark.com/.
SOURCE MRI
http://www.mediamark.com/

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