• by Wayne Friedman , November 21, 2014

Worldwide media usage grew 2.8% to 43.78 hours a week -- up six hours, 15 minutes, and 16 seconds versus 2012, according to media researcher PQ Media.

Digital media usage grew 13.2% to 5.79 hours per week, with Gen-Xers (those born between 1965 and 1979) averaging 7.36 hours a week.

Global traditional media usage inched up 1.3% to 37.99 hours per week, which PQ Media says was due to the rise of TV viewing at the expense of print media usage.

Worldwide digital media usage is expected to climb to 9.6 hours per week by 2018, with traditional media barely rising by 0.8% to 39.55 per week. Total media usage will grow 2.3% by 2018 to 49.15 hours a week.

Mobile media is expected to be the fastest-growing component of all digital media, more than doubling to 2.96 hours a week in 2018 from 1.35 hours a week in 2013.

In four years, digital media will comprise a 19.5% share of all media -- up from 13.2% in 2013. Traditional media will drop to an 80.5% share in 2018 from 86.8% in 2013.

Japan had the highest total media usage per day of any nation in 2013: 9 hours, 48 minutes and 8 seconds. South Korea’s digital media consumption had the greatest share of all media usage for a country -- at 29.3%.

PQ says it analyzes more than 100 digital, alternative and traditional media platforms and channels in every leading country worldwide, with its analysts monitoring over 2,500 media, entertainment and technology industry data sources.