Mcsey

&company

The

‘a(chǎn)ttention

equation’

Winningtherightbattles

forconsumerattention

Copyright?2025McKinsey&Company.Allrightsreserved.

Nopartofthispublicationmaybecopiedor

redistributedinanyformwithoutthepriorwrittenconsentofMcKinsey&Company.

Themediaindustryhaslong

focusedonthequantityof

consumerattentionrather

thanthequality.Asaudience

distractionandfragmentationgrow,understandingattention’struevalueiscriticaltosuccess.

Contents

Introduction2

Thedistractedstateofconsumerattention4

Howattentiondrivesperformanceinstreamingplatforms

Keyconsiderationsformediastakeholders

18

20

Themissingpieceoftheattentionequation8Attention-drivencustomersegments:

Buildingafutureonattention

22

Thethreemostvaluabletypesofconsumers12

Authorsandacknowledgments

23

‘Superattention’versus‘superusers’:

Drivingmediaspend16

Appendix

25

Introduction

A

nyonewhohasspenttoomuchofaneveningtryingtochoosebetween

entertainmentoptionsorping-pongingbackandforthbetweentheirTVscreenandtheirphonewhileattemptingtowatchanewshowormovieknowshow

manydifferentformsofmediaarefightingfortheirattention.

Mediabusinesses,creators,marketers,andbrandshavetrackedthishigh-stakescompetitionforconsumerattentionbutoftenequateittoacontestforconsumption,comparingboxscoresofhourswatchedoreyeballsreached.

Thisfocusonthequantityoftimespent—orthesizeofaudience—overlooksamoreimportantissue:thequalityoftimespent.Notallconsumerattentioniscreatedequal.Consumptionandmonetizationvarywidelyacross20majormediumsintheattentioneconomy,anddiffering

levelsofattentionareakeyreasonforthatvariability.

NewMcKinseyresearchsuggeststhatthemediabusinesshasbeenmissingthefullstoryon

consumerattention.Backedbyanin-depthsurveyof7,000consumersworldwide—including

3,000intheUnitedStates,whichformthebasisforthisreport—wehavedevelopedan“attentionequation”thatrevealsthefulldriversofattentionvalue.1Attentiondoesn’tsimplyequalthe

amountoftimespent;itequalstheamountofvaluabletimespent,drivenbyfocusandintent.(Formoreabouttheresearch,includingadditionalfindings,seetheappendix.)

Thisnewwayofthinkingaboutmediamonetizationincludesanassessmentofwhatmakes

attentionvaluable,whichmediaformatsaremostefficientatmonetizingattention,howdistinctconsumersegmentsapproachmediaconsumption,andstrategiesandquestionsformedia

playerstoconsiderastheycompeteintheattentioneconomy.(UsetheinteractivecalculatoronMcKtoestimatethevalueofattentionwithdifferingmediumsandotherfactors.)

1Unlessotherwisenoted,alldatainthisreportcomefromthissurvey.

2The‘a(chǎn)ttentionequation’:Winningtherightbattlesforconsumerattention

Notallconsumer

attentioniscreatedequal.Wehave

developedan

attentionequation

thatexplainswhy.

The‘a(chǎn)ttentionequation’:Winningtherightbattlesforconsumerattention3

4The‘a(chǎn)ttentionequation’:Winningtherightbattlesforconsumerattention

Thedistractedstate

ofconsumerattention

Thechallengeofattractingandretainingconsumerattentionisamatterofsupplyanddemand.Thesheervolumeanddiversityofcontentavailabletoaudiencesisgreaterthaneverbefore.Butthetimethatpeoplehaveorarewillingtodevotetoconsumingthosevariousformsandformatsofmediaandentertainment,includingvideo,audio,gaming,print,socialplatforms,andlive

events,isfinite.

Overthepastdecade,thetotalnumberofhourseachdaythatconsumerswatch,listento,

read,orotherwiseinteractwithcontenthasbarelygrown,increasingroughly1to2percenta

year.Atthesametime,technologicalinnovationsinproductionanddistribution,theriseofuser-generatedcontent,andtheproliferationofpremiumcontenthavecreatedadizzyingarrayof

choices.Thereare50timesmoreamateuruploadersthanprofessionalsonSpotify,25,000timesmorehoursofcontentproducedlastyearonYouTubethanonalltraditionaltelevisionnetworks

andvideostreamingservices,andeverynewtelevisionseasonandmoviereleasecompetesfortimeonthesameplatformsthatoffernearlyeveryseriesandfilmthatcamebeforeit.

Thereisn’tonlymorecontenttoconsumebutalsomoredevicestoconsumeiton—often

simultaneously.Anoverwhelmingmajorityofmediaconsumers,acrossgenerations(includingalmosttwo-thirdsofbabyboomers),nowroutinelybrowsetheinternetorappswhilewatchingTV.Newcontentincreasinglyiscreatedtodriveandcatertoshorterattentionspans,with

programmingexecutivesreportedlytellingwritersthattheyshouldassumeviewerswill

beaccessingtwoscreensatonce.Mediamultitaskingissoprevalent,bothinprofessionalandpersonaltime,thatAmericansnowspend,onaverage,roughly13hoursadayengagingwithmedia.2

Unsurprisingly,thisexplosionincontent,platforms,anddeviceshasfragmentedconsumers’collectivefocus,makingitonlymoredifficultforcompaniestoeffectivelymonetizethepublic’sshiftingengagementhabits.Inflation-adjustedmediarevenuehasremainedrelativelyflatin

recentyears,asthegrowthinconsumptionacrosssocialmediaplatforms,videostreamingservices,anddigitalaudiohasn’tgeneratedlevelsofconsumerspendingorprofitthatarecomparablewithcabletelevision,legacyprintpublications,movietheaters,andphysical

media.Digitalmediatendstogenerateasmallershareofrevenueandprofitcomparedwithitsshareofconsumption(Exhibit1).

2EMARKETERdatabase,January2025.

The‘a(chǎn)ttentionequation’:Winningtherightbattlesforconsumerattention5

Exhibit1

Consumptionofnewconsumermediaisgrowingfast,butithasn’tprovenaspro?tableaslegacyformatshave.

ShareofUSconsumermediaconsumption,revenue,andearningsin2024,bymedium,%

0

3

Consumption

4

5

7

19

23

20

21

1.5

trillionhoursperyear

3

Revenue

15

6

12

15

7

17

26

$570

billion1peryear

13

4

13

17

4

13

33

Earnings2019–24CAGR,%ConsumptionRevenue

Live3

–4

3

Digitalpublishing?

4

6

Printpublishing?

–1

–6

Gaming?

5

9

Social?

8

18

Audio?

2

4

Streaming?

13

24

Linearvideo10

–4

–5

$130

billion2peryear

Note:Figuresmaynotsumto100%,becauseofrounding.

1Doesn’tincludesearchrevenue.2Enterprisepro?tpool;includespro?tfromprofessionalcontentcreators(eg,studios)butnotfromindividualcreators(eg,

inluencers,musicians).3Amusementparks,livemusic,sportingevents,andtheatricalvideo(doesn’tincludetheater).?Digitalmagazinesandnewspapers.?Print

books,magazines,andnewspapers.?Console,mobile,andPCgames.?Socialmediaandsocialvideo.?Audiobooks,digitalmusic,podcasts,andradio.?Advertisingvideoondemand(VOD),freead-supportedstreamingTV,subscriptionVOD,andvirtualmultichannelvideoprogrammingdistributors.10BroadcastandpayTV.

Source:EMARKETER;MAGNA;Omdia;PwC;McKinseyanalysis

McKinsey&Company

Outof20primarymediaarenasweanalyzedthatarevyingforconsumers’attention,thevalue

ofanhourofconsumptionrangedfromhighsof$33perhourforlivesports,$24perhourfor

amusementparks,and$17perhourforliveconcertstolowsof$0.12perhourfordigitalmusic,

$0.11perhourforradio,and$0.05perhourforpodcasts(Exhibit2).Notably,thoughsocialmediaandsocialvideoareamongthefastest-growingarenasintermsofmonetization(revenueper

hourisprojectedtogrow10and7percentannually,respectively,from2024to2028),they

currentlyfallsquarelyinthemiddleofthenonlive-mediapack,garnering$0.25perhour.By

contrast,legacy-mediaformatssuchasprintnewspapers,magazines,andbooks,whiledeclininginvalue,stillgeneratethehighestlevelsofmonetizationafterliveeventsandgaming,wellaheadoftheirdigitalpeers.

6The‘a(chǎn)ttentionequation’:Winningtherightbattlesforconsumerattention

Exhibit2

Consumermediamonetizationvariesconsiderablyacrossmediums.

USconsumermediamonetizationin2024,bymedium,value/hourofconsumption

Advertising

Nonadvertising

$32.54

Sportingevents

$17.18

Amusementparks

$24.96

Liveeventor

physicalmedia

Gaming

DigitalmediaAudiomedia

$7.18

$1.50

$0.62

Livemusic

Theatricalvideo

ConsoleandPCgames

Print

newspapers

$0.46

Mobilegames

$0.45

Linearvideo

$0.37

Book

publishing

$0.37

vMVPDs1

$0.36

Print

magazines

$0.32

Streamingvideo

$0.27

Digital

newspapers

$0.25

Socialmedia

$0.24$0.25$0.15$0.12$0.11$0.05$0.36

DigitalSocialAudiobookDigital

Radio

PodcastTotalmedia

magazinesvideo2industrymusic

industry

industryindustry

1Virtualmultichannelvideoprogrammingdistributors.AdvertisingrevenueonlyappliestovMVPD-speci?cadvertisementslots.RevenuefromadvertisementsairedonvMVPDsbutsoldaspartoflinearpackageappearsinlinearvideorevenue.

2IncludingYouTube.

Source:EMARKETER;MAGNA;Omdia;PwC;McKinseyanalysis

McKinsey&Company

The‘a(chǎn)ttentionequation’:Winningtherightbattlesforconsumerattention7

Sportingevents,amusementparks,videogames,andtraditionallinearvideoarethemosteffectivemonetizersofattention,generatingthegreatestrevenueperhourrelativetotheirlevelsofconsumption(Exhibit3).Mediaoperatorshaveinvestedheavilyinthefirstthree

mediums,withnewlaunches(suchasUniversal’sEpicUniverse)poisedtobenefitfrom

highlyefficientmonetization.

Whilelegacymediaisretreatingfromtheefficientmonetizationfrontier,3digitalmediumsare

growingtowardit.Althoughthismonetizationvarieswithinmediums,themediumsacrosswhichanorganizationoperatesgoalongwayindetermininghoweffectivelythatorganizationconvertsattentionintorevenue(and,ultimately,profit).

Exhibit3

Digitalmediaisapproachingthee代cientmonetizationfrontier,andlegacymediaisretreatingfromit.

USconsumermediaande代cientmonetizationfrontier1in2024,bymedium

Projected$/hour2024–28CAGR,%

100

Sportingevents

–202510

Amusementparks

Livemusic

Theatricalvideo

10

ConsoleandPCgames

PrintnewspapersPrintmagazines

E代cientmonetization

frontier

$/hour

consumed,1

logscale

Bookpublishing

Mobilegames

Linearvideo

Streamingvideo

Socialmedia

vMVPDs2

RadioDigitalmusic

Socialvideo

0.1

Circlesize=pro?tpool,$billion

2

DigitalnewspapersDigitalmagazines

15

PodcastsAudiobooks

45

050100150200250300350

Hoursconsumed/year,

billion

1Activitiesthatmaximizeanoutputforagivenlevelofinputsorconstraints.Forconsumerattentionmediums,itrepresentshighestlevelofmonetizationforanygivenlevelofconsumption.Mediumsone代cientmonetizationfrontierachievehighestlevelofmonetizationforgivenlevelofconsumption(eg,nomediumhasbothhighermonetizationandmoreconsumptionthanconsoleandPCgames).

Source:EMARKETER;MAGNA;Omdia;PwC;McKinseyanalysis

McKinsey&Company

3Anefficientmonetizationfrontiercomprisesactivitiesthatmaximizeanoutputforagivenlevelofinputsorconstraints.Forconsumerattentionmediums,itrepresentsthehighestlevelofmonetizationforanygivenlevelofconsumption.

8The‘a(chǎn)ttentionequation’:Winningtherightbattlesforconsumerattention

Themissingpiece

oftheattentionequation

Whataccountsforsuchwidedisparitiesinmediamonetization?Partofitstemsfromwell-

understoodfactorssuchastheunderlyingindustrydynamicsandcontentscarcity,themixofconsumerdemographics,andtherelativeeffectivenessofadvertisingacrossmedia.However,newMcKinseyresearchshowsthattraditionalcommercialfactorssuchasconsumervalue,

platformsophistication,andindustrystructure—orwhatwecallthe“commercialquotient”—

explainonlyabouttwo-thirdsofthevarianceinattentionmonetization.Theotherthirdisdrivenbythequalityofconsumers’attention,orthe“attentionquotient,”afactorthathasn’t

beenfrontandcenterinmostdiscussionsaboutmediamonetizationuntilnow.

Basedonoursurveyof3,000USconsumers,wehavedevelopedanattentionequationthat

combinesthesetwoquotientstomeasurethetruevalueoftimeconsumersspendwithdifferentmediaformats—andforthecontentandbrandstheyengagewith(Exhibit4).Intheprocess,it

helpsexplainoverthree-fourthsofthevariabilityinmonetizationfordifferentnonlivemediums.4

Theattentionquotientconsistsoftwoprimarycomponents:consumers’leveloffocus,orhowactivelyengagedtheyarewiththecontent,andthejobtobedone,orwhytheyareconsumingthecontent.

Leveloffocus

Ourresearchrevealedseveralinsightsaboutwhereandhowconsumers’focusdiffers

acrossmedia:

—In-personexperienceselicitthehighestlevelsoffocus,perhapsnotsurprisinggiventhereactionthepersonsittingnexttoyouinamovietheatermighthaveifyoustartedscrollingthroughvideoreelsonyourphone.

—Books(digitalandphysical)engageaudiencestoacomparabledegreewithlive

experiences(highfocus:81percentversus71to88percent,respectively),farhigherthanothertext-basedcontent(62percentfornewspapersormagazines)andmostotherformsofentertainment.

—ConsoleandPCgamingistheonlydigitalmediumthatgetsclosetolivelevelsoffocus(highfocus:73percentversus71to88percent,respectively),farhigherthanotherformsofvideo-basedcontent(thenexthighestisstreamingvideo,at57percent).

—Inthedigitalrealm,communalexperiencescorrelatewithfocus.Videogamesand

streamingvideoarethemostcommunalformsofdigitalmedia(about40percentof

consumptiontimeisspentwithothers),elicitinghigherfocusthanmoresolitaryactivitiessuchassocialvideoormobilegaming.

4Whilelivemediumsfollowasimilartrendtothatdescribedintheequation—greaterattentiondrivesgreatermonetization—theiroutliermonetizationversusnonliveeventsrequiresaseparateequationtomodel.Statisticaloutputsoftheattentionequationthatfollowapplytomonetizationofnonliveevents.

The‘a(chǎn)ttentionequation’:Winningtherightbattlesforconsumerattention9

—Evenwithinmediaformats,therecanbeawidedisparityinleveloffocus.Forinstance,

higherfocusinstreamingvideoversuscableTVversusFASTTV5versussocialvideo.Also,differentplatformselicitdifferentlevelsoffocus(somestreamers,forexample,inspirefarmorefocusedviewingthanothers).

—Youngerconsumersaren’tlessattentive;theyjustpayattentiontodifferentmediums.

GenZconsumersandbabyboomersreportthesamelevelofaveragefocus,butit’ssplit

acrossdifferentmediums:GenZconsumersarehighlyfocusedwhenplayingvideogames,usingthesameleveloffocusboomersexertwhilereadinganewspaper.Thegreatest

disparitycomesinattendinglivesports,withboomersbeingfarmorefocusedthanGenZers(thoughGenZreportsmodestlymorefocuswhenwatchinglivesportsontelevision).

—Overall,themorefocusedconsumersare,themorelikelytheyaretospend.Across

consumers,a10percentincreaseinaveragefocuspaidacrossmediumsisassociatedwith

a17percentincreaseinspendacrossmediums.Consumersinthetopquartileoffocusspendtwiceasmuchasthoseinthebottomquartile.

5Freead-supportedstreamingTV,orFASTTV,includesplatformssuchasPlutoTVandTubithatofferfreeprogrammingondemandwithoutasubscription.

Exhibit4

The‘a(chǎn)ttentionequation’providesafullerunderstandingofthevalueofconsumermediamonetizationbyfactoringinthequalityofattention.

‘Attentionequation’linearregression

usedtoestimaterevenue/hourofconsumermediamediums

‘Attentionquotient’

3×4

‘Commercialquotient’

1×2

Consumervalue

Focus

Intent

Platform

sophistication

Purposeof

consumptionas

de?nedby5potentialjobstobedone

Leveloffocuspaidwhileconsuming

(eg,multitasking,mindwandering)

Economicworth

ofconsumers

foragivenmedium:

lAverageincome

lPercentageof

“superspenders”encompassed

lAge(younger=highervalue)

lReceptivitytoadvertising

$/hourviewed

Sophisticationandefectivenessof

+

=

platformofmediaconsumption:

lIndustrystructure

lAdvertising

availabilityandintegration

lDataavailability

lTechnologicalsophistication

1/3ofexplanatorypower

2/3ofexplanatorypower

r2=0.80,explaining80%ofvariabilityinmonetizationfornonlivemediums

Note:r2isproportionorpercentageofvarianceexplainedbyaregression.

McKinsey&Company

10The‘a(chǎn)ttentionequation’:Winningtherightbattlesforconsumerattention

Thejobtobedone

Theprimarypurpose,orjobtobedone,ofmediaconsumptiontypicallyfallsintooneoffivecategories.Thefollowingaretheprimaryjobstobedoneandthemediatypesthatfallintoeachcategory,listedfrommosttoleastvaluable:6

—‘ToenjoysomethingthatIlove.’In-personexperiences—includingliveconcertsandmusic

festivals,themeparks,sportingevents,andmovietheaters—dominatethiscategory.Physicalbooksand(toafarlesserextent)audiobooksarealsoconsumedprimarilyforlove,asare

certainnichestreamingservices(suchasthoseoutsideofthetopsevenstreamingplatforms,focusedonaspecificgenreofcontent).Digitalmusicisalsoconsumedprimarilyforlove,butit’stheraremediumthat’sconsumedalmostasheavilyforbackgroundambience(34percentconsumeforloveversus20percentforbackgroundambience;backgroundambienceis

secondonlytoradio).

—‘Foreducationandinformation.’Thisistheprimaryjobtobedonefornewspapers,

magazines,andpodcasts.Physicalbooks,audiobooks,linearcable,andYouTube(butneitherInstagramreelsnorTikTok)overindexonthisrole.

—‘Forsocialconnection.’Thisistheprimaryjobofsocialmediasites(Facebookmoresothanothers).Socialvideo(includingInstagramreelsandTikTokbutnotYouTube),liveevents,andvideogamesoverindexonthisrole.

—‘Forlightentertainmentandrelaxation.’Thisistheprimaryjobofcabletelevision,video

streaming,socialvideo,andmobileandconsolegaming.Ofthatgroup,videostreamingandconsolegamingaremostlikelytoalsobefrequentlyconsumedforlove.Therelativevalue

oflightentertainmentisthesameasthatofsocialconnection,meaningtheattentionequationpredictsthesamemonetizationvalueforeachjob.

—‘Forbackgroundambience.’Thisistheprimaryroleofradio,withdigitalmusic,podcasts,andcabletelevisionalloverindexingaswell.

Addingtheattentionquotienttotraditionalcommercialdriversimprovesourabilitytopredict

monetizationperhour,anditprovidesvaluableinsightsaboutwhysomemediumsmonetize

betterthanothers,alongsidehowmonetizationlevelsmaychangewithtime(Exhibit5).For

instance,anequationestimateofmonetizationthat’shigherthanitsactualvalue(forstreamingvideo,forexample)mayimplythatthemediumisundermonetizedandthatrevenuecanorwillacceleratewithrespecttoconsumption.

6Twoadditionaljobstobedoneweremeasuredinthesurvey,buttheyweren’ttheprimaryorsecondaryjobforanymedium:

“forinspirationandmotivation”(audiobooks,short-formsocialvideo,anddigitalmusicsometimesfillthisrole,albeittoasmalldegree)and“toinformapurchase”(newspapers,magazines,andInstagramreelsandTikTokoccasionallyfillthisrole).

The‘a(chǎn)ttentionequation’:Winningtherightbattlesforconsumerattention11

Exhibit5

The‘a(chǎn)ttentionequation’improvespredictionofconsumermediamonetizationbycombiningtraditionalcommercialfactorswiththe‘a(chǎn)ttentionquotient.’

Predictedconsumermediamonetizationvaluesthrough‘commercialquotient’(CQ)and‘a(chǎn)ttentionequation,’byUSmedium,1$/hour

Keytakeaways

Undermonetizedwithvaluableattention

●ValuepredictedbyCQ●Valuepredictedbyattentionequation

Streamingvideo

games

Mobile

Newspapers

Magazines

Accuratelymonetizedwithvaluable

attention

Books

AccuratelymonetizedwithsimilarCQand

‘a(chǎn)ttentionquotient’values

Radio

Audiobooks

Linearcable

Accuratelymonetizedwithlow-value

attention

Digitalmusic

Socialnonvideo

Undermonetizedwithlow-valueattention

Socialvideo

Podcasts

Monetizationnot

gaming

fullyexplainedby

ConsoleandPC

–0.5

0

ACTUAL

0.5HIGHER

equationwithhigh-valueattention2

LOWER

PREDICTEDVALUEMONETIZATIONPREDICTEDVALUE

1Asmeasuredagainstactualmonetization/hour.Attentionequationaccuracymeasuredbydiferencebetweenpredictedvalueandactualvalue.

2Consolegamingmayhavefurthercapacitytomonetizebasedonits“attentionquotient,”iftheCQevolvesandmoreadvertisingrevenuecomesintotheformat.

McKinsey&Company

12The‘a(chǎn)ttentionequation’:Winningtherightbattlesforconsumerattention

Attention-driven

customersegments:

Thethreemostvaluabletypesofconsumers

Whilethemorestandardpracticeofsegmentingmediaconsumersbydemographics,income,spend,andconsumptionprovidesvaluableinsightsintoconsumerbehavior,theattention

equationaddsanotherimportantlens:thequalityofconsumers’attentionbasedonunderlyingattitudesandbeliefs.7Thismethodologycharacterizesconsumersnotbytheirtimespentbutbytheircommercialvalueandthevalueoftheirattention.

Basedonalarge,representativesampleoftheUSpopulation,ouranalysisidentifiedsevencustomersegments.Ofthatsample,about40percenthavehighattentionandcommercialvalueandaredefinedbythreedistinctsegments:

—‘Contentlovers,,theentertainmentomnivores(13percentofallconsumers).Curiousandpassionate,theyspend2.4timesmoremoneyoncontentandconsume1.7timesmore

contentthantheaverageconsumer.They’rethesuperfans,castingtheirconsumptionnetswidetoseethemoviefranchise,watchthespin-offshow,ridethethemedrollercoaster,

andbuytheitemsadvertisedeachstepoftheway.

—‘Interactivityenthusiasts,,theimmersionseekers(16percent).Competitiveandlively,

theylovevideogames,sports,onlinebetting,andcomedy.Theypreferendorsementsto

7Weused14differentattitudinalstatementstoidentifythedifferentconsumersegments:(1)“It’stooexpensivetoconsumeallthecontentthatIwantto”;(2)“I’llavoidadvertisementsatallcosts,evenifitmeansthatIhavetopaymore”;(3)“I’mworried

aboutsharingtoomuchofmypersonalinformationanddatawithmediacompanies”;(4)“I’malwaysconsumingsometypeof

contentormedia—Ican’tnothavesomethingtowatch,listento,play,read,etcetera”;(5)“I’mhappiestwhenI’munplugged”;

(6)“Ipreferconsumingcontentinperson,suchasattendingcomedyshowsandconcerts,overconsumingitdigitally,suchas

watchingTV”;(7)“I’mverycuriousandalwayslookingtolearnnewthings”;(8)Ipreferleaninginandengagingfullywiththe

contentthatIconsumewithoutdistractionoverleaningback”;(9)“Iprefercontentthat’sinteractive,suchasplayingvideo

games,overcontentthat’spassive,suchaswatchingTV”;(10)I’dratherconsumecontentthat’screatedbypeoplelikeme,

suchassomeoneonYouTube,thancontentcreatedbyprofessionals,suchassomethingfromHollywood”;(11)“It’shardto

figureoutwhatcontentIwanttoconsume”;(12)“I’mveryextrovertedandfeelmostenergizedwhenI’msocializingwithothers”;

(13)“Iliketostayontopofthelatesttrends”;and(14)“Shoppingisoneofmyfavoritehobbies.”Alongsidetheseattitudinalbeliefs,weincludeda“mostmissed”categoryinwhichconsumerswereaskedtoindicatetheformofmediatheywouldbemostupsettoloseifitwereremovedfromtheirlivescompletely.

The‘a(chǎn)ttentionequation’:Winningtherightbattlesforconsumerattention13

advertisements,overindexonpreferenceforuser-generatedcontent,andspendagood

amountoftheirtimeinonlinemessageboardssuchasReddit.Althougheagerconsumers,theyfindthemodernmedialandscapeconfusing,difficulttonavigate,andoverlyexpensive.

—‘Communitytrendsetters,,theculturecreators(10percent).Extrovertedtastemakers,theyseekoutlargecommunaleventssuchasconcerts,movies,andthemeparks.They’reactiveonsocialmediaanddriveonlinecultureandfandom,oftenwithoutsizespendingontheir

hobbiesandinterests.Theyenjoyadvertisementsmorethananyothersegment,andwhenthey’renotsettingtheculturalconversation,they’reshopping.

Whilecontentloversareinaclassoftheirown,interactivityenthusiastsandcommunitytrendsettershavesimilarcommercialcharacteristicsdespiteasignificantgapintheir

attentionvalue(Exhibit6).

Exhibit6

Distinctconsumerattentionsegmentsexistatdiferentlevelsofcommercialperformance.

RelativevalueofUSconsumerattentionsegments,by‘commercialquotient’and‘a(chǎn)ttentionquotient’

1.0

0.8

0.6

Commercialquotient,%

0.4

0.2

0

13

“Content

lovers”

“Communitytrendsetters”

10

“Interactivityenthusiasts”

16

Mobile

scrollers

“Digital

traditionalists”

“Legacyholdouts”

“Thriftythinkers”

1110

1129

0.20.60.81.0

Monetizationvalue

LowMediumHigh

Circlesize=

populationshare

ofeachsegment,%

Attentionquotient,%

Source:McKinseyConsumerAttentionSurvey,3,000USparticipants,2024

McKinsey&Company

14The‘a(chǎn)ttentionequation’:Winningtherightbattlesforconsumerattention

Theremaining60percentofconsumersareclusteredingroupswithlowerattentionvalueandlowerintrinsicvalueandaredefinedbyfourdistinctsegments.Despitesharingalowerintrinsicvalue,thesesegmentsdohavesomedisparityintheirattentionvalue,andtherearesignificantdifferencesandpocketsofvalue—ifyouknowwhere(andhow)tolook:

—‘Digitaltraditionalists,’thetech-savvylegacyviewers(10percentofallconsumers),areolderthanmembersofothersegmentsandopenminded.Theye