Between 2002 and 2005, the number of domestic broadband households doubled from 20.7 million to 42.3 million. Looking forward, the number of broadband households is forecasted to increase 84% from 2005 to 2009.

More optimistic estimates are provided by leading Internet research entities for current broadband adoption:
53% of Internet households currently have broadband– Pew Internet Research, May 2005
61.3% of Internet users have broadband at home – Nielsen/NetRatings, Aug 2005.

US Hispanics are a growth segment for broadband: 72% have access to the Internet from any location, 54% of Hispanic adults have Internet access at home – of which 48% have broadband (Source: Arbitron 2005). In the same ballpark, AOL/Roper Hispanic 2005 Cyberstudy estimates that 52% of US Hispanics have broadband at home.

Overall, important time spent duration metrics have increased more for US Hispanics than the general market. Total minutes spent online have increased 51% for US Hispanics, while only 17% year to year, May 05 for the general online audience (GM). During this time, total page views increased 64% for US Hispanic, versus 19% for general market.

Comcast, a leading broadband provider, grew their US Hispanic audience on Comcast.net from 615,000 in September 2004 to a year to year peak of 892,000 in April 2005 (Source: comScore Media Metrix US Hispanic panel).

The audience accessing Terra via broadband is even higher than average: 73% connect via broadband.

To further build on this large broadband audience, Terra recently partnered with Comcast to power their Comcast Latino broadband offering. Check out the latest news and entertainment headlines on http://comcast.terra.com.

Broadband Audience – Desirable Target

Along with faster connectivity comes usage and audience attributes that are favorable to marketers and advertisers alike.

Not surprisingly, there is a strong correlation between broadband and multimedia usage. Data from Forrester Research indicate that broadband users are three times more likely to access online audio or video content than dial-up users. This broadband intensive content includes movie trailers, clips, and reviews, plus streaming live video with interactive chat.

Broadband is beginning to change the Internet from a purely communication and commerce platform to a dynamic, interactive entertainment platform. This is a fundamental shift in the way people engage in entertainment.

For instance, broadband households are 50% more likely to be active online shoppers (Source: IAB, 2004). Broadband users are more likely to engage in online gaming, downloading music and watching video content.

To meet the needs of the rapidly growing Hispanic broadband audience, Terra offers http://www.terra.com/ocio/videos/, music videos of favorite artists and exclusive interviews: http://www.terra.com/musica/videos/archivo/portada.htm, games http://www.terra.com/juegosarkadium/ and film/DVD trailers http://www.terra.com/ocio/cine/dvd/.

Technology improvements and changing usage patterns mean that online audio and video content and consumption will continue to grow significantly over the next few years. Publishers are taking note. CBS recently relaunched their online news site, cbsnews.com, to feature a video based Internet news network updated 24*7. comScore Media Metrix reported that during June 2005, 56% of US Internet users watched streaming video (Source: Online Publishes Association, Oct 2005).

With greater numbers of broadband users accessing online video, the potential for rich media advertising will inevitably grow within a broadband pipeline. New ad units are emerging from video players used to serve video on demand and live stream. Typically, 300x250 banner or rich media creatives can be shown within the spot before a video starts, known as screenshots, displayed for up to ten seconds or so. Most importantly, the video ad has made its debut as anywhere from a 5 to 30 second streaming spot shown before the requested video on demand. According to Forrester Research, an estimated 41% of marketers surveyed were interested in video on demand advertising (Source: eMarketer, June 2005). Advertisers are waking up to the fact that video is video, regardless of the distribution platform (Web, TV, PDAS, etc).

US Hispanics are spending more time online, are avid users of multimedia content and broadband services and are increasingly controlling their online entertainment options.

Be a Smart Marketer, understand how broadband is evolving and influencing the way US Hispanics are using the Internet. This spreading broadband wave is sure to have far reaching marketing implications now and for years to come.

To learn more about how you can reach Terra.com's quality audience with your marketing message, call us at 212-354-2700.

By Natasha Funk Published October 31, 2005. If you missed past issues of Terra’s Smart Marketer Series and would like to obtain them, please send an email to: smartmarketer@terra.com.