The numbers are staggering - so staggering that radio stations not interacting with their listeners on social networks have no way of being successful. Consider this - Americans spend a third of their online time (36%) communicating and networking across social networks, blogs, personal email and instant messaging. The numbers are courtesy of a new Nielsen study of what Americans do online. The greatest percentage of time online is spent on social networks and that number is expanding like Snooki's waistline. From June 2009 to June 2010 share of time spent on social networks has gone up 43%, from 15.8% to 22.7%. And how about this - "A full 40% of online time is spent on just 3 activities - social networking, playing games and emailing leaving a whole lot of other sectors fighting for a declining share of the online pie", according to Nielsen analyst Dave Martin...
Other findings include online games replacing email as the second most heavily used activity behind social networking - accounting for 10% of all U.S. internet time. Email dropped from 11.5% of time to 8.3%. Despite some predictions that had the rise of social networking pushing email and instant messaging into obscurity, that is not about to happen although both saw double-digit declines in share of time. Email remains as the 3rd heaviest activity online (8.3% share of time) while instant messaging is 5th, accounting for 4% of online time. Videos/movies grew by 12% from 3.5 to 3.9% and in June 2010, the number of videos streamed passed the 10 billion mark. The average consumer streaming online video spent 3 hours 15 minutes doing so during the month...
The way consumers spend their internet time on their mobile phones showed a slightly different picture than that of internet use from computers. In a separate study of mobile web users, there was a double-digit (28%) rise in the prevalence of social networking behavior, but the dominance of email activity on mobile devices continues with an increase from 37.4% to 41.6% of U.S. mobile internet time...
The results of the data received from Nielsen is an eye-opener but not unexpected. We're living in a social world where sharing photos, music and the most mundane information ranks as high as the news of the day. To scores of people on social networks, that is the news of the day. The radio stations not taking advantage of that are as stale as yesterday's newspaper...
10 Timeline Memories:
1.1852] A rivalry is born: America's first intercollegiate athletic event takes place on Lake Winnipesaukee (NH) when Yale meets Harvard for a crew race...
2.1933] M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E: Walt Disney takes up a manufacturer's suggestion for a Mickey Mouse watch and the timepiece is introduced in Chicago. Sale price was $2.75 and thousands of watches were sold in the 30s. This provided Disney the dividends needed to stay in business until the release of "Snow White", toward the end of the decade...
3.1949] Wedding Bells: The Basketball Association of America (BAA) merges with the National Basketball League (NBL) to form the NBA. The '49-'50 standings show the following franchises divided into 3 divisions: (Eastern) Syracuse, New York, Washington, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Boston. (Central) Rochester, Minneapolis, Chicago, Ft. Wayne, St. Louis. (Western) Indianapolis, Anderson, Tri-Cities, Sheboygan, Waterloo and Denver...
4.1966] "Happy Trails": Controversial but brilliant comic Lenny Bruce is found dead at 40 in the bathroom of his Hollywood Hills home. Official cause of death: "acute morphine poisoning caused by accidental overdose"...
5.1975] When you wish upon a star: After seeing the Astrodome in Houston when that facility opened, Louisiana Governor John J. McKeithen says "I want one of those, only bigger." On August 3, 1975, the Superdome opens in New Orleans...
6.1981] See ya, see ya -- wouldn't wanna be ya: The PATCO traffic controllers union pulls its traffic controllers out on strike. After being warned they would be replaced, they are. Thank you President Reagan...
7.1987] Ronnie gets a pass: The Iran-Contra hearings end with none of the 29 witnesses tying the president directly to the diversion of arms-sales profits to Nicaraguan rebels...
8.1993] Supes on: The Senate votes 96-3 to confirm Ruth Bader Ginsburg...One year later to the day -- Stephen G. Breyer is sworn in as a Supreme Court Justice...
9.2001] Life imitates art: A grand jury indicts "Soprano's" actor Robert Iler (AJ) on charges that he and two teen-aged buds robbed 2 other teenagers of $40 in this, Upper East Side neighborhood...
10.2004] Reunited and it feels so good: The Statue of Liberty pedestal reopens to the public for the first time since 911. The crown opened in 2009...
Music Memories:
•1963] Released on this date: "Surfer Girl" - Beach Boys..."Hello Muddah, Hello Fadda" - Allan Sherman...It becomes a huge hit, a camp anthem, a board game...
•1966] Recorded on this date: "Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby" - Rolling Stones...
Commentary...
Mitch ("Sing Along With Mitch") Miller, head of A&R for Columbia Records in the 50's and chiefly responsible for many of the hits on the label during the decade, passed away at Lenox Hill Hospital on Saturday at the age of 99. Mitch was a proponent of popular music but hated rock 'n' roll...Another passing to note is that of former veteran record promotion executive from Boston, Paul Maged, 93. In addition to his local promotion work, Paul also held regional positions for several record companies in the 60s and 70s. A trumpet player, Paul was one of the last known survivors of the Coconut Grove Fire in Boston. Funeral arrangements are available here...
"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":
Evangeline Lilly (31), Tom Brady (33), Jay North (59), Martha Stewart (69), Beverly Lee, original Shirelle who owns the Shirelles trademark (69), Martin Sheen (70), Tony Bennett (84) and Marv Levy (85)...
Timeline Countdown: 5 days until Pro Football HOF Induction (Grimm, R.Jackson, Le Beau, Little, Randle, Rice & E.Smith), 6 days until 1st NFL pre-season game & 34 days until Labor Day...
