• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, December 27, 2010

With approximately 75 million individuals ages 12-29 living in the U.S. today, Gen Y is believed to be the largest generational cohort since the baby boomers. And digital media is "trouncing" traditional channels in the battle for affluent Gen Y consumers, according to a new study by L2, which examined the media consumption habits of well-heeled millennials, defined as anyone born between 1980-2000).

The L2 study was based on an international survey panel of 535 young adults who expect to be earning more than $80,000 per year in the near future. Of key interest to advertisers and marketers, it delved into the implications for luxury marketers looking to connect with prestige-oriented members of this rising generation.

Facebook is a dominant presence in the Gen Y media mix, with 81% of affluent millennial consumers using it every day; that's about twice the proportion who read newspaper content (45%) or watch TV shows (44%) every day.

Some 25% said they use mobile devices to access social media, while a solid majority gave social media an important role in their consumer decisions. Sixty-three percent use social media to engage with brands, and over half said their attitudes toward brands were shaped by Facebook, blogs and online video produced by brands.

Companies take note: 45% said they read blogs every day.

Indeed, online video is making impressive strides among the Gen Y affluent audience: 42% of the sample group said they watch TV shows online, while 27% watch movies online. It's no surprise that mobile is playing an increasingly important role, with 13% saying they had watched video on a mobile device in the past 24 hours.

When Gen Y affluents do consume traditional media content, it tends to be via digital channels. For example, 66% of respondents said they read newspaper content online. However, there is considerable variation between media: 71% of respondents said they still read print magazines, compared to just 24% who read magazine content online.