New study explores how Millennials consume paid media content

A majority of Millennials regularly got paid news content in the last year, whether paid for by themselves or someone else, according to a new study conducted by the Media Insight Project, a collaboration between the American Press Institute and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Moreover, 40 percent of Millennials personally paid for news. The study is a deeper examination of a nationwide survey conducted in early 2015.

"This study makes it clear that, contrary to popular belief, Millennials pay for content online," said Trevor Tompson, director of The AP-NORC Center. "But there are differences in their approach to consuming news that will continue to make paid or subscription models a challenge for news publishers attempting to attract a younger demographic."

Some of the key findings of the study include:

• Socioeconomic differences are not a major indicator. The study found few socioeconomic differences between those who pay for news and those who do not.
• 87 percent of Millennials pay for some types of content, and the most popular services are movies and television (55 percent) and music (48 percent).
• Facebook and search engines are still the most common sources for obtaining news, even among those Millennials who pay for news from other sources.

"One big factor in whether people pay for news is their attitude about whether news helps their lives," said Tom Rosenstiel, executive director of the American Press Institute. "But there is also a challenge here. Some cohorts of Millennials believe that because news is important for democracy, it should be free, almost like a right. And we don't know whether that view will change as these younger adults age. That is going to be a hurdle for news publishers."