UGC Users Outnumber Creators

(c) eMarketer

Are enough people recording their cats?

Even taking into account the power and ease of use of user-generated content tools like digital cameras and affordable audio/video production software, there are more content consumers than creators.

In the US, the number of users of user-generated content will hit 101 million by 2011, up from the 2006 estimate of 69 million.

Globally, the estimated number of user-generated content users will hit 254 million by 2011, up from 128 million in 2006.

Not surprisingly, the number of people who create content — i.e., post videos, photos, music, blogs, wikis, personal profiles and personal Web sites — is expected to increase significantly as the user-generated content movement gathers steam, rising to 95 million in the US by 2011, up from 70 million in 2007.

Globally, the number of user-generated content creators will reach 238 million in 2011, up from 137 million in 2007.