This week the Online Publishers Association (OPA) announced the results of its latest Generational Media Study, designed to provide a detailed view of the 18 to 34 year-old media consumer. The study examines how the Internet, television, radio, newspapers and magazines compare across the generations on a range of attitudinal measures.
It’s no longer a case of ‘Book Good, Screen Bad’. It’s now increasingly accepted and understood that the screen is a ‘moveable feast’. So, all of you who are involved in online content will be happy and relieved to learn that 97% of 18 to 34 year olds believe that online is the same or better than magazines for finding information about products and music.
Since it has now become apparent that TV advertising is outmoded and ineffective, advertisers must turn their attentions to the online community especially since 67% of respondents say that watching a short video clip online is the same or better than watching highlights on television. Notwithstanding, television moguls can breath a sigh of relief, temporarily any way, since more youngsters still favour television over online media for watching longer video programming.
For the Internet, the only way is up, with 47% of respondents indicating that they spend more time using the Internet now compared to one year ago, while interestingly, a healthy minority reported spending less time playing video/PC games and watching television.
The print media should be worried though since the Internet and television are by far the most frequently used media by all respondents, 83% saying that reading a story on the Internet is the same or better than reading one in a newspaper. Furthermore, the importance of newspapers differs significantly, with more daily readers coming from the 35 to 54 age group.
But attitudes take a quirky turn when it comes to trust; with more 18 to 24 year-olds saying that they trust the news they get in newspapers, compared to older readers. Could the technobabes be too naive, or is it really true that we become more cynical as we grow older?