Not Naughty but Nice: Online Shopping and Local Mall win over Free Downloads in Survey by SOUL
BOCA RATON, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE via COLLEGIATE PRESSWIRE)--Nov 19, 2003--Music ranks high on the holiday shopping list of over 1,200 college students and young adults aged 16 to 30, according to results of a new survey conducted by SOUL, a creative leader in MP3 players, and Student Advantage, Inc. (OTCBB:STUA), a leading integrated media and commerce company focused on the higher education market.
''Music is viewed as a popular gift to give by an overwhelming 90% of the primarily college-aged respondents because it`s convenient and always welcome,'' reports Keith Kravitz, Vice President of U.S. Operations for SOUL. ''We know that traditionally music is an important gift item, and we wanted to compile current stats on 2003 holiday gift plans in the young adult age range to better serve their needs.''
Musical artists who top the charts for gift-giving this holiday season include:
1. Beyonce
2. Dave Matthews
3. Outkast
4. Matchbox Twenty
5. Christina Aguilera
6. Eminem
7. Dido
8. Sting
9. Nelly
10. Limp Bizkit
In addition to the top 10 artists listed above, respondents cast write-in votes for almost 200 artists. 50 Cent, Evanescence, Justin Timberlake, P. Diddy and Clay Aiken are just a few of the dozens of performers mentioned who will find their music in the online and in-store shopping baskets of this primarily Gen Y group (1981+), according to survey results.
Contrary to much of the controversy surrounding the legalities of downloading, shoppers are playing it safe when it comes to buying musical gifts for family and friends. The vast majority of respondents (71%) plan to buy their gifts online or at the mall.
MP3 is the format of choice for listeners, with 75% of respondents hoping to receive the popular device that lets these young adults carry music around campus, to the health club and other daily stops. Almost one quarter (23%) of respondents describe themselves as ''MP3 power users,'' since they use MP3 players almost exclusively. The largest group (44%) listen to MP3 music formats regularly.
Students shopping for just the right MP3 player to go with their music gifts should visit SOUL online at https://www.soulplayers.com for a complete selection of digital music devices that feature a WMA player, FM Radio, Voice Recorder and FM Recorder and storage device.
Methodology
This SOUL survey was conducted online nationally between October 21 and November 3, 2003 and drew 1,277 respondents aged 16-30 years old from 50 states. The survey was hosted online at https://www.studentadvantage.com.
The survey has a 95% confidence level and a 1.4% margin of error based on the universe of visitors to the Student Advantage website. The survey questions and response data are available at https://www.soulplayers.com/script/news.asp.
About SOUL
SOUL is the North American division of AVC Technology, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hong Kong based AV Concept Holdings Limited. One of the leading global manufacturers of portable MP3 players and related devices, the firm also offers a full range of marketing and engineering services to resellers. AVC has a successful production record of over two million MP3 players packaged for leading consumer electronics distributors. AV Concept Holdings is publicly listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The company`s website is at https://www.soulplayers.com.
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