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Thirty-seven percent of consumers with high-speed Internet access are interested in watching TV online in either short or long form according to a new report from Jupiter Research, "Programming for the Three Screens".

The demand for online video is big; most who watch online content want it to be advertisement free. This presents an issue for the media companies. JupiterResearch says there is no clear model that has been majorly successful at generating revenue.

The main advantage to online video is building an audience, creating audience loyalty and driving users back to traditional television. "Broadband video nicely complements TV today, but this grace period won't last forever," said Joe Laszlo, Senior Analyst and Research Director with JupiterResearch. "Substitution of Internet video for traditionally delivered video will grow over the next few years, and media companies must account for this coming audience shift in their mid-to-long term plans."

Two key factors encourage people to watch videos online. Friend's recommendations and Internet search attract users to online video. David Schatsky, President of JupiterKagan thinks there is more things media programmers can do to raise interest in online video.

"There are many tactics that media programmers should employ to increase interest in online video," said Schatsky, "For example, by including an 'e-mail this video' link on a page, or using URLs short enough to paste into an IM window, programmers can facilitate audience growth."

Most users currently watch most of their programming on traditional TV instead of online. Laszlo believes that consumer's preferences will change with convergence. "I think it's only a matter of years before consumers start watching content on the Internet."

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Mike is a staff writer for WebProNews. Visit WebProNews for the latest ebusiness news.