• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, September 16, 2004

11 Million US Adult Internet Users Use Instant Messaging More Than Email

A new survey by the Pew Internet & American Life Project finds that instant messaging is especially popular among younger adults and technology enthusiasts. 62% of Gen Y Americans (ages 18-27) report using IM, and 46% report using IM more frequently than email.

The report notes that 42% of online Americans use instant messaging, and 24% of instant messengers say they use IM more frequently than email. This translates to 53 million American adults who instant message and over 12 million who IM more than emailing. On a typical day, 29% of instant messengers-or roughly 15 million American adults-use IM.

"There is no doubt that IM use will intensify," said Amanda Lenhart, research specialist at the Pew Internet Project and co-author of the report. "Younger Americans, in particular, have incorporated IM into their lives in multiple ways, using it to keep track of their friends, coordinate work meetings, and share files. IM use at home and in the workplace will grow as these creative and time-saving uses of the technology percolate through the generations."

Twenty-one percent of IM-ing Americans instant message at the office; they find it encourages interoffice cooperation and increases work productivity. When asked who they contact most often during IM sessions at work, 40% of at-work IM users reported instant messaging coworkers, 33% reported friends and family, and 21% interact with both groups equally.

You can find out more here.