The internet has become a viable distribution channel for a variety of online content, especially in the era of broadband. The Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life surveys show that roughly 66% of American adults currently have home broadband connections, which enables users to quickly and easily download software, movies, television shows, music, e-books, and news articles.  As a result, more and more commercial entities are exploring the internet as a business model for delivering these types of digital content and media to potential consumers.  In addition, non-commercial organizations are looking to the internet to distribute for-fee content. So far, all the material that is distributed by the internet is “intangible,” but some commentators have pointed to a future in which the internet, combined with other technologies such as three-dimensional printers, distribute tangible goods that can be assembled by the end user. ¹

Some observers have questioned whether internet users are willing to pay for online content and many media sectors are struggling with the disruption that digital networks have created for their businesses.² The issue of people’s willingness to pay for online material has enormous implications for media companies, artistic creators, and others who are hoping to sustain themselves – or grow new businesses – by raising revenues through online purchases.

The Pew Internet Project set out to get a broad overview on this subject by exploring what types of online content internet users are purchasing, how they are purchasing it, and who is doing the purchasing. The survey data reported here are from telephone interviews with a nationally representative sample of 1,003 adults living in the continental United States – of whom 755 are internet users. Telephone interviews were conducted by landline (672) and cell phone (331, including 134 respondents who say they do not have a landline phone). Interviews were done in English by Princeton Data Source from October 28-November 1, 2010. Statistical results are weighted to correct known demographic discrepancies. The margin of sampling error for the complete set of weighted data is ±3.7 percentage points, and the margin of error on the internet sample is +/- 3.9 percentage points.

In the survey, we asked if respondents had ever paid to access or download a particular type of online content.  We queried for 15 types of online content and then asked an open-ended question about whether respondents had paid for another type of content not on our list. We then asked how respondents paid for online content, whether via a subscription, to download an individual file, or to access streaming online content. Finally, we inquired about how much respondents had paid for subscription services in the last year and how much they had paid for other types of online content in the last month.

Online content versus tangible products and services

We found that 65% of internet users said they had paid for at least one of those 15 kinds of content – or another kind that was not on our list but mentioned by respondents. This is roughly the same as the percentage of internet users who have said in other Pew Internet surveys that they had purchased tangible goods online such as books, music CDs, toys, or clothing. In a survey in May 2010, 66% of internet users said they had done that. ³

We also found in that May 2010 survey that 66% of internet users said they have made travel purchases or reservations online (i.e., airline ticket, hotel room, or rental car).³