2006 marks the 10th anniversary of the Internet as a consumer medium. Today, an estimated 86% of active business travelers and 73% of active leisure travelers have access to the Internet at home, and the majority now go online through a high-speed connection.

And although the percentage of Internet users among active travelers continues to grow, the rate has slowed considerably from that observed through the late 90's and early years of the new millennium simply because the "early adopters" have already adopted.

But online travelers continue to display noteworthy differences in their "looking" and "booking" behavior. Specifically, the incidence of Internet usage to plan some aspect of a business or leisure trip has leveled off during the past 12 months. It has actually displayed a statistically significant decline among leisure travelers.

This should come as no surprise, however, as every new technology eventually reaches a natural rate of market penetration (for example, only two thirds of all adults carry cell phones), and it may well be the Internet is now approaching this level given the demographic composition of the general population. These "looking" trends are highlighted below:

Many readers of this newsletter will find the aforementioned results counter-intuitive for one simple reason: the sustained increase in bookings they receive from various online sources (including their own). This should come as no surprise, however, as the incidence of Internet usage by both business and leisure travelers to actually book travel services continues to rise.

Not surprisingly, the rate is slightly higher for business versus leisure travelers as reflected below:

Note there is still a 12-14% difference in the percentage of those who "look" versus those who "book." And the implication is clear: the percentage of active travelers who actually make reservations online will grow for years to come, although probably not at the same rate we have observed in recent years. This is particularly true when you realize that fully one-third of active travelers still express concern about using a credit card to make a reservation online!

Yesawich, Pepperdine, Brown & Russell is a marketing, advertising and public relations agency that delivers extraordinary results for its clients through proprietary consumer insights, surprising strategies, big ideas and bold creative executions. We build powerful service brands, with an unrivaled expertise in the travel and leisure industries.

For more information on the Yesawich, Pepperdine, Brown & Russell/Yankelovich Partners National Travel Monitor™ please go here: http://www.ypbr.com/page_loader.php?tid=v2&sid=marketintelligence&pid=publications