Report: Streaming Media Gaining Speed

Despite the fact that high-speed Internet access has yet to take a firm hold with the vast majority of the wired public, measurement firm Nielsen//NetRatings reported Tuesday that streaming media consumption soared 65 percent over the past year.

According to the report, a record 35 million online users accessed streaming content in November, and more than a third of all Internet users viewed some form of streaming content during the month.

Nielsen//NetRatings said the significant growth was fueled in part by the recent spate of compelling newsworthy events, including the Olympics and the contested U.S. presidential election, as users took to the Net in droves to find specialized audio and video content.

"Historically, branding opportunities have been limited to high-profile events in television, radio and print, but now streaming media is wooing and winning eyeballs on the Web," said NetRatings director of Internet media strategies T.S. Kelly.

Kelly also noted that other streaming media vehicles -- such as movie trailers, commercials and full-length feature films -- are experiencing aggressive demand.

Cutting the Media Pie

Underscoring the growing influence of women on the Internet, Nielsen//NetRatings also found that an increasing number of women viewed streaming content over the past 12 months. Roughly 16 million women accessed streaming files in November of this year, a 77 percent surge from last November's figure of 9 million.

Similarly, 19 million men watched streaming content in November 2000, a 56 percent jump from November 1999.

The most notable growth, however, was experienced among seniors over the age of 65, with 1.4 million unique visitors in that age bracket clicking on some form of streaming media. The figure represents a 95 percent spike from last year.

When usage data was broken down demographically, researchers said that African-Americans saw the most dramatic growth, with 3.5 million unique users in November representing a 118 percent increase. The numbers outpaced usage rates among Caucasian surfers, a demographic that included significantly more streaming media users -- upwards of 30 million -- but a slower growth rate of 64 percent.

Content Capture

Nielsen//NetRatings also said that the current streaming media surge is a harbinger of things to come. In the near future, analysts forecast that content providers will utilize a broad array of cutting-edge technology in order to meet the demands of increasingly sophisticated Net users.

"What we're seeing now are the first steps toward convergence," said Kelley. "As the popularity of streaming media grows, television and radio companies are beginning to produce content that captures the Web user, leveraging different media to reach their target audience."

Accordingly, researchers said that those with high-speed Internet connections are 50 percent more likely to access streaming media content than their dial-up counterparts.

Net Growth Driver

The new findings from Nielsen//NetRatings dovetail with a recent report from U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray, which concluded that streaming media will drive the next wave of Internet growth as the quality of multimedia content available online becomes more refined.

According to the study, the total spending on Web streaming media will top US$21 billion in 2004, a more than two-fold increase over the $9.7 billion spent in 1999.

In order to compile its statistics, Nielsen//NetRatings collected real-time data from more than 70,000 online users, including 62,000 in-home users and 8,000 at-work users.