Deloitte report claims traditional media 'more popular than online'

Traditional media including print, TV and radio remains more popular than online in Britain, according to research from Deloitte.

The business advisory firm's Media Democracy report said British people spend around 69.7 hours a week consuming different kinds of media.

For 72% of consumers, TV came out top, followed by books (42%), music (36%) and the internet (35%).

Nearly three-quarters of respondents (73%) said they preferred reading printed magazines even though they knew they could find most of the same information online.

It also revealed that traditional print adverts are more trusted than online, with 59% of consumers paying the greatest attention to print advertising in magazines and 56% giving more attention to adverts in newspapers compared with any type of online advertising.

Some 50% of respondents claimed they would click on more internet ads if they were more targeted to their needs or if they could receive more free content that they found valuable.

However, the report found 64% of consumers believed any type of internet ad to be more intrusive than print advertisements in newspapers and 26% would be willing to pay for online content in exchange to not being exposed to advertisements.

Deloitte claims its Media Democracy report is designed to provide a "reality check" on how British consumers are currently consuming media and what their preferences might be in the future.

Jolyon Barker, head of technology, media & telecoms at Deloitte, said: "The Media Democracy report highlights the strength of traditional media and the pull of television advertising with the British public.

"The strength of the newspaper and magazine industry is apparent with media consumers enjoying them and valuing their content."

Around 84% of respondents said TV advertising is most likely to influence their buying decisions. Magazine adverts influence 54% of consumers' choices, followed by 45% who are influenced by newspapers and online advertisements.

People aged over 64 are most impacted by newspaper adverts with 71% saying their buying decisions are influenced by it.