Gartner's Dataquest Forecasts 52 Million Telewebbers in the United States by the End of 2000.

Business Editors

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 8, 2000

Many U.S. consumers are yearning for more interactivity in the programs they watch on television, as the number of telewebbers in the United States has reached 44 million individuals in 2000, according to a new survey by Dataquest Inc., a unit of Gartner Group, Inc. (NYSE:IT and ITB). Dataquest defines a telewebber as an individual who watches TV and simultaneously surfs the Web. The survey of 40,000 U.S. households was conducted in February 2000. By the beginning of 2001, the number of telewebbers is projected to reach 52 million U.S. consumers, up from 27 million consumers in 1999.

"Telewebbers are prime candidates as potential early adopters of 'true' interactive programming through a single device, as opposed to using multiple devices simultaneously, whether PC or television," said Sujata Ramnarayan, senior industry analyst for Dataquest's e-Digital Media Worldwide program. "This is the group of consumers that manufacturers of set-top boxes and service providers should target initially."

However, interactivity needs to be non-intrusive and should not take away from the primary activity of watching TV. "As an initial step, they should start with a minimal level of interactivity, such as offering instant viewers' polls, the ability to make purchases, and hot advertisement buttons that will provide more product information. News programs should consider displaying links to their Web sites on a news story, pointing to greater editorial detail. Interactivity may also extend to multiple viewer angles on a show, news stories or sports," Ms. Ramnarayan said.

In 2000, 60 percent of telewebbers have used the Internet at least occasionally to get information on a product they saw on television. About 32 percent ordered a product that they saw advertised on television via the Internet. This compares with 44 percent getting information on a product and 20 percent ordering a product in 1999.

"While commerce-related activities are relatively more popular, some of this can be attributed to the lack of programming-related interactivity, both in quantity and in choice and variety, available today," said Ms. Ramnarayan. "It's clear that consumers are ready for greater interactivity in the programs they watch on TV, including advertisements. Programmers and advertisers should incorporate interactivity into their productions."

Approximately 6 percent of the U.S. adult population has access to some form of broadband compared with 12.5 percent among telewebbers. The disparity among the two groups is expected to grow, as 18 percent of telewebbers intend to get broadband access in the next 12 months compared with 8 percent in the general population.

A more detailed analysis on these consumers is available in the Dataquest report, "Telewebbers on the Rise." This report examines the behaviors of telewebbers, and it highlights what digital media technologies consumers are adopting.

Additional information on this marketplace is available by subscribing to Dataquest's e-Digital Media Worldwide program. This program provides strategic analysis of new digital media markets and technologies, from the creation to delivery (over the terrestrial Internet or MPEG-encapsulated IP packets over broadcasting channels), sale and ultimate playback of digital media.

To subscribe to the program, please call 800-419-DATA, or 408-468-8009. More information about Dataquest's programs, descriptions of recent research reports, and full text of press releases can be found on the Internet at http://www.dataquest.com.

Gartner's Dataquest is the recognized leader in providing the high-technology and financial communities with market intelligence for the semiconductor, computer systems and peripherals, communications, document management, software, and services sectors of the global information technology industry.

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