According to an eMarketer study, 97 million women are projected to log on this year, compared to 91 million men; however, men are more likely to use the Internet to view video. The study concluded that only 66 percent of women using the Internet will watch online videos, compared to 78 percent of men.
eMarketer senior analyst Debra Aho Williamson, who authored the study, attributes these figures to the fact that women use the Internet more as a utility — doing errands, completing chores — while men tend to use their computers for entertainment.
"Men are more likely to use the Internet to have fun," Williamson told Reuters Life! News. "And a lot of what you see on [video-sharing sites like] YouTube.com is silly, time-wasting kinds of things that maybe women don't feel they have the time for, or don't want to have the time for."
She does expect the gap to close in upcoming years, however, projecting that as younger generations of women become more interested in online video — and as networks and content providers offer more female-oriented material — the percentage could jump as high as 84.6 percent by 2011.
The eMarketer report can be viewed at eMarketer.com.
