Of significant interest to those advertising to the automotive market, a recent Forrester study reports that more than one in six affluent households (income in excess of $100,000) bought a new car in 2001. Another 4% bought used cars, and affluent households spend $25,000 every five years to replace their vehicle.

A recent Forrester Brief collected and summarized several previous studies to gain an insight into the Internet Consumer. The Brief concludes that marketers should embrace the Internet not only for brand advertising but also by tapping rich data sources for insights into consumers’ needs and motivations.

An extremely thorough report by Stephanie Coyles and Timothy C. Gokey in The McKinsey Quarterly, 2002 Number 2, describes their recent two-year study of the attitudes of 1,200 households about companies in 16 industries as diverse as airlines, banking, and consumer products which shows that to increase the customers’ loyalty, companies must do more than track today’s typical metrics: satisfaction and defection.

A recent AT&T Broadband survey reveals some new trends and uses of high-speed Internet by men and women. According to the survey, more men than women expressed interest in shopping online -- by a considerable margin of 58 to 42 percent of survey participants. In another unexpected response, women expressed interest in playing online games with someone in another city more than men, by a narrow 51 to 49 percent margin.

A recent release by The Media Audit, that tracks media in 85 metro markets, found that newspaper subscription fees for access to online web sites for two of its measured papers not only didn't discourage subscribers, but viewership increased. "We were surprised by the research findings," says Bob Jordan, co-chairman of The Media Audit. "The research makes it pretty clear that the switch to paid access can be made - at least in some markets -- without damaging the long term prospects of the site," he added.

In order to reach the Wireless Adult, it is desirable to know what she looks like, and where she is! The latest study from Scarborough Research shows that Houston leads the nation with almost three-fourths of adults owning a cellular phone. Other cities that have a high concentration of cell phone ownership are Atlanta with 73 percent, Honolulu with 70 percent, Miami with 69 percent and Dallas, also with 69 percent.

Local television audiences are turning to cable, Web, and print options for daily news. A new report from Forrester Research suggests that broadcasters can reconnect with local news audiences by collaborating with newspapers to cross-promote their headlines, share content liberally, and strive for all-day relevance. By drawing upon print coverage, stations can add depth to their news coverage and boost their credibility.

Yet another esoteric opportunity could be pay-per-view as a medium in which advertising may encroach. And it's a growing market. Estimating that more than 8 million U.S. homes are currently passed by VOD-capable cable networks, this number will rise to nearly 50 million by the end of 2003.

Interactive TV presents opportunities for advertisers, marketers, retailers, interactive service providers, TV broadcasters, telecom companies, cable companies and many more. In advance of iTV, Jupiter predicts 32.2 million households in Europe will have digital television (DTV) in 2002.

In a March 2002 Consumer Survey, Jupiter reveals that 70 percent of online adults cannot understand why anyone would pay for content online. David Card, Jupiter vice president and senior analyst says, " While there is money to be made in the online content business, Jupiter's latest survey and market forecast numbers indicate that the mass market still largely shuns anything that smells like a subscription online."