How Teens Use Media

"How Teens Use Media" reports on research by The Nielsen Company about how to reach the "wired" (accessible through information and communication technology (ICT) and media) teenager. It gives data on media being used by youth (primarily on United States (US) youth ages 10-19) and recommends reaching them "for everything from consumer packaged goods marketing to the democratic process" through media used to reach adults.

As stated here: "The notion that teens are too busy texting and Twittering to be engaged with traditional media is exciting, but false....
• Teens are NOT abandoning TV for new media: In fact, they watch more TV than ever, up 6% over the past five years in the U.S.
• Teens love the Internet...but spend far less time browsing than adults: Teens spend 11 hours and 32 minutes per month online - far below the average of 29 hours and 15 minutes.
• Teens watch less online video than most adults, but the ads are highly engaging to them: Teens spend 35% less time watching online video than adults 25-34, but recall ads better when watching TV shows online than they do on television.
• Teens read newspapers, listen to the radio and even like advertising more than most: Teens who recall TV ads are 44% more likely to say they liked the ad.
• Teens play video games, but are as excited about play-along music games and car-racing games as they are about violent ones: Just two of their top five most-anticipated games since 2005 are rated “Mature.”
• Teens’ favorite TV shows, top websites and genre preferences across media are mostly the same as those of their parents: For U.S. teens, American Idol was the top show in 2008, Google the top website and general dramas are a preferred TV genre for teens around the world.

It’s true: the media universe is expanding for teens. Social networks play an increasingly important role (about half of U.S. teens use Facebook) and now many teens access the Web over their phones (37% in the U.S.) Teens time-shift video with DVRs [digital video recorders] and they place-shift on their video MP3 players. Yet teens are not unique in this media revolution. The media experience has evolved and cross-platform engagement will be critical to reaching all consumers, not just teens."

The document concludes the following: "Not only are teens a measurable and reachable segment, but they can be reached and engaged in ways very similar to their parents...Today’s teens are different [from] previous generations - social networking and time-shifting, relying on MP3s and mobile Internet, not because they are uniquely wired but because they are an artifact of larger, demographically broader shifts in media behavior...To best engage this segment in marketing, civic and cultural pursuits, you must discard the notion that they are alien. Instead, examine the nuances of their media behavior as you would any demographic segment... it could mean the terms of engagement they so often want: to be treated more like adults."