• by Gavin O'Malley , May 11, 2005

People are spending more time with the Internet and less time with so-called "traditional" media like TV, radio, magazines or newspapers. At least that's what 2,600 Web users said they thought they were doing when surveyed by online ad sales rep Burst! Media. Asked about their media consumption habits over the past year, 61 percent of the respondents said they spend more time on the Internet today than a year ago, with 32 percent saying they spend "much more time," and 29 percent claiming to spend "somewhat more time" online.

At the same time, 36 percent said they are spending less time today than a year ago watching television, 34 percent spend less time reading magazines, 30 percent devote fewer hours to reading the newspaper, and 27 percent aren't listening to the radio as much.

Of note, even among teens and 18- to-24-year-olds, three out of five--62.6 percent and 60.9 percent, respectively--said they were spending more time today on the Internet than a year ago. These are groups that most think already spend a significant portion of their overall "media time" online. Eighteen- to-24-year-olds are more likely than other segments to say they are spending less time today than a year ago listening to radio--33.7 percent--or watching television--40.5 percent. Other demographic segments who said they spend less time watching television include males ages 25-34 (39.6 percent) and males ages 35-44 (41.2 percent).

Women ages 25-34 and 35-44 are the demographic segments most likely to say they spend less time today than a year ago reading newspapers: 34.6 percent and 39.5 percent, respectively.