Some Interesting IT-Facts

37% of broadband users look up Web sites related to TV programming, according to Forrester Research report. Forrester Research surveyed 3,207 US adult consumers online, HeadlightVision conducted in-home interviews in 17 households. 34% of broadband users look up Web sites mentioned on TV ads. 18% take part in online polls mentioned on television, and 11% go online to learn about characters in a show. Wired broadband now accounts for 50% of Internet hits, while dial-up accounts for 43% and wireless broadband accounts for 8%.

40% of US consumers have read a political blog and more than 25% read them once a month or more, according to Harris Interactive. There are more adults reading the blogs of political pundits and prognosticators than there are people posting comments on them. Out of 2,630 online adults, less than 10% had ever posted a comment to a political blog. Harris found that 15% of those surveyed had posted comments.

While Peer-2-Peer and piracy issues have not entirely disappeared, consumers are showing heightened awareness and interest in legitimate online music services, reports In-Stat. The worldwide online music market is expected to grow 134% this year, reaching $1 billion for the first time. Over 50% of the survey respondents who have downloaded music from the Internet admitted to not paying for it. The average amount spent in the past year for online music was $25. 35% of the respondents are owners of an MP3 player, with 70% saying it was their first one.

Analysys Research said active mobile penetration, which excludes phones that have not been used for about three months, would grow to 98% from 90% in 2006 and eventually exceed 100% in Western Europe. Cell phone penetration in western Europe will hit 100% by 2007. Analysys expects mobile service revenue to grow at 9% per year between 2004 and 2007.

IDC found that US wireless carriers generated $1.6 bln in data service and application revenues in Q4 2004 from a base of 178.2 mln subscribers and customers. Data services and applications are essential to slowing or reversing the slide in average revenue per unit (ARPU) associated with the voice side of the business - and while data represented some 5.8% of industry-wide ARPU in Q4 2004, IDC anticipates it will grow to better than 15% of total service revenues in the years ahead.

18% of the $20.9 bln venture capitalists invested in 2004 went to biotech, up from 4% just five years before. The San Francisco Bay Area has 820 biotech companies with 80,000 workers, more than any other US region, BayBio says.

US employers created 262,000 jobs in February 2005, as auto workers returned from temporary layoffs and construction activity snapped back from a cold January, according to the Labor Department. The unemployment rate, however, rose to 5.4% from January 2005 5.2%, but the gain partly reflected an increase in workers entering the labor force.

Fast Company magazine runs a list of top 25 jobs. They analyzed such data as job growth (in terms of employer demand), salary potential, education level and room for innovation. Among the IT occupations, both software engineer and systems analyst made it to the top 10 list, ranking #3 and #9 respectively.

1. Personal finance adviser
2. Medical scientist
3. Computer software engineer
4. Chiropractor
5. Environmental engineer
6. Biochemist and biophysicist
7. Sales manager
8. Epidemiologist
9. Computer system analyst
10. Athlete

Society of Human Resource Management found that 75% of the nation's employees are looking for a new job. Executives are the most dissatisfied, with 82% on the job hunt. 43% say they want a new job for more money. But dissatisfaction with opportunities at their current job and burnout were pretty high on the list too (35%).