France/technology

TV loses French youth to internet

Article published on the 2009-10-16 Latest update 2009-10-17 08:50 TU

a computer user at Gare du Nord
(photo : AFP)

A new report released by the French Ministry of Culture shows that young French people, aged between 15 and 24 years old, are spending more and more time in front of their computer screens and less time in front of their televisions.

According to the report, the youngest demographic surveyed spend 21 hours per week on their computers and only 16 watching TV.

Besides being the only ones to prefer the internet to television, this youthful group is also the only one to cut back on TV, reducing their consumption, in favour of the internet. They watch two hours less than they did 12 years ago, when the last report was published.

People aged between 35 and 44 years old spend ten hours on the internet weekly and 18 in front of the television. For the over-65s, these numbers are only two hours per week on the computer, and 27 watching television.

But, the report’s author claims, the arrival of the internet in homes is still making itself felt.

“In 1997, only one per cent of French households had access to the net,” said sociologist Olivier Donnat, who worked on the report. Today, more than 50 per cent of French homes are online.

The phenomenon of spending more time on the internet could increase in coming years, Donnat said, especially as more and more television is becoming available online.

The report also notes another big difference between French youth and their elders: they prefer English movies and music to French-language fare.

The dividing line is slightly younger for music preferences, with all those older than 25 prefering French music to English. Regarding film, those 34 and younger prefer Hollywood, and over-35s like French film more.