MUMBAI: ComScore Networks has released its
first-ever research report demonstrating the broad reach and demographic appeal of Internet video and audio in the US.
The information contained in the report State of the Consumer Streaming Market released in conjunction with StreamingMedia.com, revealed that consumers between the ages of 35 and 54 years old accounted for more than 45 per cent of all online video watched in August 2005.
Further, the research found that 35 to 54 year-olds are 20 per cent more likely to watch online video than the average Internet user. 25 to 34 year-olds are 12 per cent more likely than the average Internet user to watch a stream online. These age groups have traditionally been viewed as vital targets for marketers across a variety of products and services.
JcomScore Networks Media and Entertainment Solutions senior VP Erin Hunter says, "Advertisers are waking up to the potential of Internet video units. People want more than a two-dimensional experience online, and this powerful medium now reaches everyone with engaging and interesting content. Contrary to public perception, it's not just 'college kids' or 'bleeding edge' Internet users who are streaming videos. Publishers are using innovative approaches to deliver their content, using high-quality video product clips, music videos, movie trailers - even full news broadcasts - to engage their consumer. This creates a fantastic opportunity for advertisers to capitalise on what is now a mainstream audience."
Additional key findings from the report include:
-- More than 100 million users consume online digital media (streams and downloads) in the US in a month. This represents almost 60 percent of the US online population (97.5 million computers).
-- Video consumption crosses all dayparts and demographics, with the primetime and daytime dayparts showing particular strength.
-- Nearly two-thirds of all US Internet users in August streamed audio or video through a portal and almost 50 per cent did so from an entertainment site
-- More than 17 per cent of US Internet users streamed content from a music site and 15 per cent streamed from a retail site.
Warner Bros. Online VP sales Darryl LaRue says, "There is clearly an audience for entertaining video content online. More importantly this audience has shown that they are receptive to the right kind of
advertising messages if it means they can access content for free. Using ComScore's video ratings we are better able to identify and target audiences with content that is relevant to them and valuable to advertisers."
ComScore's report is based on a representative cross-section of more than 1.5 million US consumers who have given ComScore's explicit permission to confidentially capture their full browsing behavior, including audio and video consumption. Through its proprietary technology, ComScore measures millions of audio and video records each month to report traffic by site, player, format and protocol. ComScore also matches each record to demographic data, enabling analysis of streamed content and those who consume it.
ComScore consultants apply this deep knowledge of customers and competitors to help clients design marketing strategies and tactics that deliver superior ROI. ComScore's services are used by companies like AOL, Microsoft, Yahoo!, Verizon, Best Buy, The Newspaper Association of America, ESPN and Nestle.
