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For Immediate Release February 22, 1996
Contact: Cristi Allen
callen@decisionanalyst.com
Phone: 817-640-6166
Nearly 12 Million Households Online, Survey Shows
Arlington, Texas — Slightly more than 12 million of America’s 98
million households report that they now subscribe to computer on-line services,
according to a recent survey by Decision Analyst, Inc., a leading national
marketing research firm.
Of the 10,000 households randomly selected for the survey, about 40 percent had
some type of in-home computer. Among those households with home computers,
about 30 percent subscribed to an on-line service.
The survey reveals that on-line services most often are used in households
headed by those 45 to 54 years old (where 16.6 percent of households have
on-line service), and in households with incomes of $40,000 or more (where 18.4
percent of households have on-line service).
By geographic region, on-line services are most popular in the West (15.2
percent of households) and Northeast (14.2 percent of households). By
education, those with post-graduate degrees are most likely to have on-line
service (24.1 percent of households).
American On-Line has a 42-percent market share, and leads its competitors by a
large margin, according to the Decision Analyst survey. America Online is
followed by CompuServe, with a market share of about 22 percent, and Prodigy
with a 17 percent share of market.
"These results are interesting in several ways, including evidence that
on-line usage plummets after age 55," said Jerry W. Thomas, president of
Decision Analyst, Inc. "That helps explain why the Midwest, with an older
population, has the lowest on-line usage rate in the nation. As for on-line
usage in general, it is clear this service is predominantly embraced by the
well educated and the affluent. It is also apparent that households with
children are much more likely to subscribe to on-line services."
"In terms of competition, it’s interesting that Prodigy, a pioneer in
on-line service, was surpassed so readily by America Online."
Its national survey of online usage, conducted during late 1995, has a margin
error of plus or minus one percent.
For additional information contact:
Cristi Allen
Publicity
Email: callen@decisionanalyst.com
Phone: 1.800.ANALYSIS (262.5974)
Address: 604 Avenue H East
Arlington, TX 76011
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