The Quebec Statistics Institute was interested in the distribution of discovery practices of the Quebec population in the digital environment. This survey notes that these practices vary depending on the cultural products sought.
As part of Quebec’s Digital Cultural Plan and under the objectives of the Franco-Quebec mission on discoverability, the Ministry of Culture and Communications of Quebec has mandated the Institut de la tourisme du Québec (ISQ) to he is conducting an investigation into the discovery practices of the population who consume cultural products and who use the Internet to discover them.
To better understand the scope of this investigation, let’s go back to the basics. “Discovery practices” refer to the methods and approaches used to explore, discover, or understand a topic. The Institute then focused solely on samples of people consuming cultural content at a given frequency and using the Internet to discover it. People who do not use the internet for discoveries were filtered (see: non-internet audience).
Our study will focus only on practices related to digital and audio books
The Institute asked itself several questions. How do people who consume series and films, music, books or podcasts in Quebec discover these products on the Web? What are the sources and means used to discover Quebec content in French?
Note :
1. Population aged 15 and over.
2. The audience includes people consuming these cultural products, at least monthly for series and films, music and podcasts and at least annually for books.
Source: Institute of Statistics of Quebec, Quebec survey on the discovery of cultural products and digital technology, 2023.
The data in a little more detail;
The Books:
As for books, 25% of the population have read them at least a few times over the past year and used the Internet to discover them. Of this number:
46% use distribution or sales service platforms to discover digital or audio books;
70% carry out keyword searches on search engines, 66% consult those around them and 64% go to physical places such as bookstores, stores or libraries to discover books.
The members of this sample are those who use streaming platforms the least. The latter contribute to the progressive modernization of reading. Adapting the book industry to the digital age represents a real challenge. Indeed, the majority of people prefer to travel to obtain information rather than using digital or audio books; on average, 25% of people, depending on their age, use the Internet to discover and learn about books.
This group is made up of a greater proportion of women (65%) than men (51%). Regarding age, more people aged 65 and over are part of the book audience (62%) than those aged 30 to 44 and 45 to 64 (55% for these two groups).
The proportion of young people under 30 who are part of the book audience is 60%, which remains high, although it is not significantly different from that of the other three age groups. The higher the level of education, the greater the probability of belonging to the book audience. Indeed, the share of people in this group is greater among those with a university diploma (66%) compared to other levels of education: 57% for a college diploma, 53% for a high school diploma. and 48% for those without a diploma.
The low popularity of digital and audio books in Quebec is largely explained by the proportion of people aged over 65. In addition, 60% of Internet users use the Internet to quickly discover and purchase or borrow digital books, while only 31% want to access audiobooks. This may be attributed to the fact that audiobooks are generally less popular than digital books.
The survey shows that age is an important sociodemographic factor. 15-29 year olds who consume cultural products are the most active in their discovery methods. Additionally, they tend to use both French and English for their searches, unlike the older population.
These results are aimed at cultural and political circles to enable them to better respond to consumer demand by targeting their practices and making it easier for them to discover content. In a context where each platform today uses referencing and recommendation of cultural content, this investigation is essential. This will help guide users towards works or cultural experiences that might interest them.
Photo Credits: Institute of Statistics of Quebec
