When you hear the word “hip,” what do you think of? Okay, let’s make this a little easier. I’ll give you some options: a) lava lamps, b) podcasting, and c) horn-rimmed glasses.
If you said “horn-rimmed glasses,” you’re right on; they’re toally retro-hip. What? You thought it was podcasting? Not so fast there, gunsmoke. A new study by Forrester Research (slogan: If there’s a trend in the forest, and we haven’t published a study on it…does it really exist?) claims that the podcasting audience is actually much smaller than you might think, to the tune of around 1% of American households. And when they do download podcasts, they prefer to use it as an alternative form of listening to existing content, like radio broadcasts. The good news is that awareness of podcasting is high, around 25%, and there are a metric ton of podcasts out there, so it’s just a matter of convincing people to listen.
For my part, the podcast bug has never really bitten me. I think I’m more interested in making one than listening to one, and I haven’t made one because I have no idea who would listen to my drivel by choice. Really, the only podcast I listen to regularly is Macworld’s, because, well, I’m a Cyrus Farivar junkie. There, I said it.
By the way, if you answered ‘a’ to the above question, well, lava lamps are pretty dope, but you might want to consider ditching the shag carpet.
[via Ars Technica]
