11% of Young Adults watch TV Online Weekly.

11% of adults ages 18 to 34 now watch TV online at least once a week, according to the latest findings by MultiMedia Mento (MMM) from Knowledge Networks. These young adults spend 80% more time online than the general 18-to-34 population, and 16% more time (about 1.25 hours per day) with media generally; they are also much more likely to belong to and use social networks.

The 18-to-34 leading-edge media group — defined by their weekly viewing of TV programs online — has grown from 10% in the Fall 2007 MultiMedia Mentor report to 12% in Spring 2008 (11% is the weighted average across the two waves). Among these young adults:

— Daily time spent with the Internet and TV is about equal — roughly 3.5 hours for each

— Almost half (46%) belong to one or more social networks — indexing at 177 versus the general 18-to-34 population — and this activity consumes 19% of their online time, versus 12% for the general 18-to-34 population

— Instant messaging accounts for 16% of the TV-online group’s Internet time (compared to 12% for all 18-to-34s)

— Email was the most used of five specific online activities at 19%, the same proportion of time spent as the general 18-to-34 group

Data collected by Knowledge Networks from MultiMedia Mentor respondents indicates that, while the 18-to-34 TV-online group is ahead of the curve in Internet use, it is mostly conventional in other characteristics. For example:

— 58% go to the movies in an average month, compared to 53% of all 18-to-34 consumers

— 81% have gone to a fast food restaurant in the past month, compared to 87% of the general 18-to-34 population

— 63% own a videogame system, versus 57% of the general population

However, the 18-to-34 year olds who watch TV online weekly are more likely to own an MP3 player — 62% do, compared to less than half (45%) of all 18-to- 34s.

“Weekly viewing of TV programming online is emerging as a marker for leading-edge media use among this crucial 18-to-34 group,” said Bob DeFelice, Vice President for Client Service at Knowledge Networks. “For the most part, the TV-online viewers are not trading one medium for another; they are just adding a big helping of Internet time. As more and more of the 18-to-34 population moves in this direction, understanding this group’s media preferences and habits will grow in importance to marketers. And we know that a ‘platform-agnostic’ approach — one in which content is accessible many places, at the user’s demand — will be an essential ingredient of reaching young adults.”

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For more information at http://www.knowledgenetworks.com