Media Post: Led by a surge in entertainment spending, U.S. consumers shelled out $987 million for online content during the first half of this year, marking a 16 percent increase from the first half of 2004, according to a report issued Monday by the Online Publishers Association.
Spending at entertainment and lifestyle soared by about 45 percent to $265 million in the first half of this year, from $183 million in the first six months of 2004. Almost half of the total entertainment/lifestyle spending–$115 million–was from single-purchase sales, such as digital music.
Other categories showing large gains were research sites, which surged by 39 percent to $73 million; games, which grew by 23 percent to $54 million; personal growth, which jumped 19 percent to $58 million; and personals and online dating sites, which grew by 8 percent to $245 million.
Still, the vast majority of Web surfers–around 89 percent–didn’t pay for any content as of this June.
