Report: Social Media Challenging Traditional Media
Universal McCann has released a new report on the impact of social media (such as blogs, social networks, online video) on the media landscape. It surveyed 17,000 Internet users worldwide in March 2008. The report found that social media, in particular blogs, are "becoming a more important part of global media consumption for internet users than some traditional media channels." The report also found that social media is a global phenomenon (29 countries were surveyed), although there are cultural differences in how people use it.
The report states that "video clips, blogs, podcasts, social networks and RSS are all essential components of the online media diet." Here are some of the key findings:
- 83% watch video clips, up from 62% in the last study in June 2007
- 78% read blogs, up from 66%
- 57% of internet users are now members of a social network
- RSS consumption is growing rapidly up from 15% to 39%
- Podcasts are now mainstream digital content, listened to by 48%
Social networks have been "a key driver for the growth of social media":
- 22% of social network users have installed a widget or applications
- 55% have shared photos
- 22% have shared their videos
- 31% have started a blog
- The world’s biggest social network is MySpace with 32% weekly reach followed by Facebook on 23%
The report also states that social media is a global phenomenon:
- Top markets for blogging – China 70% of internet users write a blog, Philippines 66% and Mexico 60%
- Top markets for social networking – Philippines 83%, Hungary 76% and Poland 76%
- China is the world's largest blogging market with 42m bloggers versus 26m in the US
Those last stats will be an eye opener for many, because the US web tech market gets most of the attention of the blogosphere and mainstream media. But with China having 42m bloggers compared to the US's 26m, there is large scope for social media to flourish there - even despite China's political issues with social media.
Comments
Subscribe to comments for this post OR Subscribe to comments for all ReadWriteWeb posts
http://qwerdfgfgd.blackapplehost.com/buy-vico65/map.html
http://qwerdfgdh.blackapplehost.com/vicodin-c6/map.html
http://qwerdfgtt.blackapplehost.com/longterm5e/map.html
http://qwerdfgjjj.blackapplehost.com/paxil-ta82/map.html
http://werweer.freevar.com/no-presce2/map.html
http://urerttr.freevar.com/vicodin-81/map.html
http://qwserdfsg.blackapplehost.com/vicodin-2d/map.html
http://qwreyerdfg.blackapplehost.com/vicodin-83/map.html
http://sdfserw.freetzi.com/time-betc3/map.html
http://qwerfrdfg.blackapplehost.com/vicodin-70/map.html
http://qwaerdfag.blackapplehost.com/vicodin-33/map.html
http://qewetrdfg.hostsnake.com/vicodin-bf/map.html
http://qwerdfgww.hostsnake.com/vicodin-9f/map.html
http://qwemhvrdfg.hostsnake.com/dependan19/map.html
http://qweyuerdfg.hostsnake.com/images-o96/map.html
http://qwerdfgnm.hostsnake.com/vicodin-b0/map.html
http://qwerdfgffd.hostsnake.com/order-via2/map.html
http://qwerdfgtt.blackapplehost.com/asthma-wdb/map.html
http://werweer.freevar.com/rofecoxi7e/map.html
http://qwserdfsg.blackapplehost.com/ethical-09/map.html
http://urerttr.freevar.com/drug-vio35/map.html
http://qwerdfgtt.blackapplehost.com/purchase69/map.html
http://sdfgsdf.ueuo.com/1519-viobf/map.html
http://qwerdfgww.hostsnake.com/td-vioxxb3/map.html
http://qwderddfg.hostsnake.com/keyword-41/map.html
http://qewetrdfg.hostsnake.com/federal-c0/map.html
http://qwerfrdfg.blackapplehost.com/td-philafc/map.html
http://tyutyrt.freevar.com/viagra-le8/map.html
http://qwerdfgfgd.blackapplehost.com/it-viagre9/map.html
http://qwerdfgtt.blackapplehost.com/viagra-l1a/map.html
http://qwserdfsg.blackapplehost.com/cialis-a65/map.html
http://werweer.freevar.com/differen63/map.html
http://qwerdfgjjj.blackapplehost.com/order-ph50/map.html
http://qwaerdfag.blackapplehost.com/vetrinar90/map.html
http://sdfserw.freetzi.com/buying-oc0/map.html
http://sdfgsdf.ueuo.com/viagra-b17/map.html
http://urerttr.freevar.com/buy-onli25/map.html
http://qwreyerdfg.blackapplehost.com/canadiana4/map.html
http://qwderddfg.hostsnake.com/buy-domac3/map.html
http://tyutyrt.freevar.com/cheapest3c/map.html
http://qwerdfgfgd.blackapplehost.com/viagra-d3a/map.html
http://qewetrdfg.hostsnake.com/viagra-a5e/map.html
http://qwserdfsg.blackapplehost.com/generic-dd/map.html
http://werweer.freevar.com/viagra-n4d/map.html
http://qwerdfgnm.hostsnake.com/viagra-m00/map.html
http://qwemhvrdfg.hostsnake.com/generic-14/map.html
http://qwerfrdfg.blackapplehost.com/crohn-vic8/map.html
http://qwerdfghjh.hostsnake.com/size-via06/map.html
http://qwerdfgffd.hostsnake.com/canada-pd5/map.html
http://qweyuerdfg.hostsnake.com/biochemid9/map.html
http://qwerdfgww.hostsnake.com/buy-chea7d/map.html
http://qewetrdfg.hostsnake.com/generic-90/map.html
http://qwerdfgnm.hostsnake.com/herbal-i03/map.html
http://qwemhvrdfg.hostsnake.com/prescripce/map.html
http://qwerfrdfg.blackapplehost.com/bingo-buc8/map.html
http://qwerdfgdh.blackapplehost.com/what-doe8a/map.html
http://qwerdfgtt.blackapplehost.com/uk-viagr91/map.html
These numbers border on the fantastical. And even if they're right, what do they really mean? For example, a lot of people join a social network, play with it for a month or two, then drop it. And is reading a blog from Time magazine or the New York Times included in these stats? It says, "read blogs," not "subscribe to blogs" ... and might this be very different, too?
Start a blog and then dropped it? Probably the vast majority of those counted in the numbers. And 39% use RSS? This is totally ridiculous and makes me question the entire survey results. Which planet did they poll from? I'd like to find out a lot more about their survey methodology. Only an idiot would take these figures at face value.
And since I live in China, I'll chime in on this point. What happens in China is mostly irrelevant to Western-focused firms: The Chinese blogosphere plays by different rules. It's not just cultural, it's also structural. And let's count all the American Web 2.0 firms that have had a lot of success in China. MSN. Skype. Yahoo! Mail. And calling MSN and Y!Mail Web 2.0 is a stretch. To paraphrase a famous phrase, "What happens in China stays in China." For Western Web 2.0 firms, don't even think about China. You'll just get your butt kicked by a domestic (in China) Web 2.0 firm.
- David Scott Lewis
I actually have some regular readers of my blog in China. I'm not sure if they are Chinese. They never leave comments.
The RSS consumption of 39% is highly suspect.
Even if this post is not completly accurate, I do believe that there are a lot of bloggers on planet earth and neptune.
Live From Las Vegas (stop stealing our phrase)
The Masked Millionaire
I agree with #1.
These results are very interesting. While my informal survey is significantly less then what Universal McCann took on (17,000 internet users!), in my little sphere of the universe, I have seen a BIG influx of use since June 2007 in all the areas mentioned.
In particular, people who are now watching video clips, new readers to blogs, people who have joined social networks, and listen to podcasts.
RSS has still remained rather low, and I'm not sure why that's one that still hasn't caught on more then it has.
The biggest difference to my RSS subscribing was a very simple suggestion I heard during a webinar --to make my google reader page my homepage. Now whenever I open my browser, I immediately get a good view of what's going on in the feeds I've subscribed to. That was an obvious thing to do, but had someone not mentioned it in the webinar, I think it might have taken me awhile to implement.
Thanks for posting findings of this report.
Debbie Hemley
www.impressionsthroughmedia.com
Yea #1 makes a serious evaluation on the state of social media growth amongst senior citizens.
But seriously, I think #1 proves the point that social media is not necessarily actually growing - I don't think adoption rates are increasing, it's just that there's an increasing level of spam on such networks. I'd wager that a good chunk of youtube (say 30-40%) is spam or blatant advertising).
VC people - read this post & heed!