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Profiling the On-Demand Media Consumer

As technology continues to advance, consumers are increasingly using different forms of audio and video on their own terms � a phenomenon Edison Research began tracking in 2005 called "on-demand media consumers."

The last 12 months have seen numerous partnerships arising from consumer adoption of these technologies and behaviors that have led to unprecedented control over the types of programming they consume and when they consume it. The advent of on-demand devices and services such as TiVo/DVR, iPod with video, Video On Demand (VOD) programming from cable/satellite TV providers and others is beginning to change the way content providers deliver media and the manner in which they are consumed.

Arbitron and Edison Media Research present the latest in their series of Internet and multimedia market studies entitled "Internet and Multimedia 2006: On-Demand Media Explodes." A total of 1,925 people were interviewed to investigate Americans� use of various forms of traditional, online and satellite media. From January 13 to February 12, 2006, telephone interviews were conducted.

Key report findings include:

There was a sharp increase in the number of Heavy on-demand media consumers compared with last year. In 2005, we classified 11 percent of consumers age 12 and older as Heavy on-demand media consumers. With advances in technology and increased changes in on-demand behavior, this figure increased to 21 percent in 2006.

Consumers find cell phones and broadband Internet access the most "life-changing" new technologies. Edison asked respondents about a long list of devices to determine which had had the biggest impact on their lives. Overall, the item consumers reported having the most impact is the cell phone, with 38 percent of all respondents saying it had made a "big impact" on their lives. When they looked among the user base for each technology, the most powerful item is broadband Internet access.

Households with broadband Internet access now significantly outnumber those with dial-up access. Last year, approximately half of those with home Internet access had broadband and half had dial-up connections. This year, 58 percent of those who have Internet access at home use either a cable or DSL modem for a high-speed Internet connection, compared to 38 percent who use a dial-up service. Of those who do not have a broadband Internet connection, 25 percent say they plan to get high-speed Internet service in the next 12 months.

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