A new study says that there are 80 million bloggers and the number is still rising.
Blogs are set to become mainstream media with more than 80 million people aged 16 to 44 writing one.
The finding comes from Web 2.0: The Global Impact, a study by Universal McCann into the consumer adoption of web 2.0 and associated technology like social networks and podcasts.
The study, claimed to be the largest of its type, interviewed 16,000 frequent web users aged 16 to 44 in 15 markets.
The study found 48 per cent of respondents had visited a blog; 26 per cent wrote one; and 20 per cent planned to start one.
China is the world's biggest blogging market with 25 million people writing one; more than double the number in the US. This is well ahead of the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Spain, which share five million.
Social networking continues to gain momentum with 69 per cent sharing photos online, while 74 per cent have reviewed a product or service. However, podcasts and RSS have failed to make an impact, with just 17.4 per cent and 20 per cent, respectively, having downloaded or subscribed to these services.
Tom Smith, EMEA senior research executive at Universal McCann, said: "The changing internet is radically altering users' media habits the world over ... these are real challenges that brand owners and media companies must face up to now - not in 10 years' time."
80 million bloggers? That is absolutely mind-boggling.
