Internet is more important than friends and sex

The Internet and mobile internet are dramatically changing the behavior and media consumption patterns of the Americans. The latest piece of research to show this is from the ad agency JWT.

Surfing the net has become an obsession for many Americans with the majority of U.S. adults feeling they cannot go for a week without going online and one in three giving up friends and sex for the Web.

The poll found 48 percent of respondents agreeing they felt something important was missing without Internet access. More than a quarter of respondents or 28 percent admitted spending less time socializing face-to-face with peers because of the amount of time they spend online.

It also found that 20 percent said they spend less time having sex because they are online.

Mobile phones won out over television in a question asking which device people couldn't go without but the Internet trumped all, regarded as the most necessary.

This phenomena isnt just happening in the US as I m certain that its taking place in Asia and Europe too where internet is more than just an access tool. Much of the time are spent on Instant messaging, email, blogging and more recently social networking. Its the main screen for many of us including myself where i had almost stopped watching the TV where TV used to be my only screen.

Ad dollars and media spending will eventually catch up to consumers. You’re starting to see it as ad spending declines in traditional media. A second piece talks about data from Nielsen, confirmed and similarly reported by others (such as TNS), reporting that ad spending is down across the board in traditional media:

The big research company says that for the first half of 2007, ad spending slipped 0.5% versus the same time period for 2006. Not surprisingly, the Internet led the way--again--as the most improved category, up 23.6% versus a year ago.

On the losing end were some long-suffering print categories: Local newspapers were down 8%; national newspapers fell 5.9%; business-to-business magazines were off 5.7%; local magazines tumbled 5.2%; and local Sunday supplements gave away 4.7%.

This study should provide a wake up call to traditional media companies who really need to adapt and accelerate their online distribution strategies or they will be have a hard time competing with their online counterparts or even go out of business.