More Canadians choosing Internet over TV, radio

An increasing number of Canadians are subscribing to high-speed Internet and companies are doubling their advertising efforts on new media platforms.

Meanwhile, Canadians are watching less TV and listening to fewer hours of radio programming, yet operators in the sectors are squeezing more sales, reports The Financial Post on the annual broadcasting industry report prepared by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC). The study found that in 2006, the number of Canadians who either listened to radio or watched TV over the Internet increased slightly. Moreover, Canadian households with Internet access climbed, to 70% from 64%, with a bigger increase in households signing on to high-speed subscribers, to 60% from 51%.

"Advertisers have noticed, and have almost doubled their spending on online marketing, to 1 billion last year from 562 million in the year-ago period," said the article. "As for the conventional sectors, Canadians watched on average 27.6 hours of TV per week in 2006, slightly under the 28.1 hours in 2005. Revenue for TV operators increased almost 8%. For radio, Canadians listened to 18.6 hours per week in 2006, a little less than the 19.1 in 2005. Sales for that medium increased 5.7%."

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