What Do People Use The Internet For?

Consumers are using the net for email, entertainment, communication, research and relationship development just to name a few right? Well, according to the Online Publishers Association, it's content that Internet users are seeking. The results of an extensive 4 year study were released earlier this month which charted the amount of time Internet users spent with e-commerce, communications, content and search.

At the end of the study conducted by Nielsen/Net Ratings, almost half of the Internet users were using the web to visit content. This is dramatic increase compared to the 34% content driven use just 4 years ago.

"The dominant role of content is driven by several important factors. The first is the online transition of traditionally offline activities, such as getting news, finding entertainment information or checking the weather. Consumers spend considerable time with social networking sites, which serve not only as places of content but are also increasingly important communications vehicles."

The cliche' phrase, content in king, traditionally refers to how search engines are indexing and viewing relevancy of websites. It now appears that content is clearly more important to consumers as well.

The study identifies the things that are contributing to the increased time spent with content online:

• More access to high speed internet
• Increased popularity of online videos
• Better search capabilities
• Increased total content on the web
• The rise of instant messaging now allows a much more convenient messaging medium versus standard email

The last bullet in the list is the primary reason that consumer Internet use for communications has dropped by an incredible 28% over the last 4 years.

Let's hear your comments. What do you do online? Do you spend most of your time online at work or at home?