A new study released by World Internet Project (WIP) on Monday showed that “very few” Internet users in Australia are willing to pay or buy digital music and film copies. The study also revealed that “a fewer” number of Aussies would pay for online newspaper articles.
The WIP-funded survey was conducted in Australia by the ARC Center at Swinburne University of Technology.
Around 1, 000 Internet users participated in the survey.
According to the study, the price of the digital content is the deterring factor why many Internet users will not subscribe for music, movie, and newspaper downloads. Many of the respondents see the Internet as free form of entertainment and relaxation.
Also, the study also showed that 71.4 percent of the Internet users are not considering on paying to what they want to read online while only 7.2 percent of the respondents said that they are willing to pay – at the cost of $1.50.
However, the survey failed to mention the frequency the users will download or read such paid contents.
WIP has conducted the study after the launch of the new Apple iPad, which is now being utilized by major newspaper and advertising companies to sell their products. One of the best examples is the new iPad News application, which offers users daily new articles for around $4.99 a month.
The number of people buying and downloading music and movie files on the Internet has doubled since 2007 to 2009. However, despite the increase in the figures, around 80 percent of the people are not willing to spend their cash on digital copies.
“Many of the people that we have asked said that they are not willing to pay for such service online, saying that they rather buy hard copies (CDs and DVDs) from their local music record outlets.
But despite the claims of the respondents, the amount of downloads in the Internet today continued to go up as more users enjoy the free services that the online world has to offer.