Pew Hispanic Center, our favorite Hispanic think thank, just released a new report with data that supports what most of us, intuitively have known: Hispanic use of the Internet continues to grow.  Here are some highlights from the study:

- From 2006 to 2008, Internet use among Latino adults in the U.S. increased by 10 percent, from 54% to 64%.  The rates for whites, on the other hand, rose four percent, and the rates for blacks rose only two percent during the same period. 

- For Hispanics the increase in online use has been fueled mostly by increases in Internet use among groups that have typically had very low rates of online use.  For example, foreign-born Latinos, Latinos with less than a high school education, and Latinos with household incomes of less than $30,000 experienced significant increases in internet use. 

- Even though Latinos gained in overall internet use, the pattern of home internet access changed very little.  In 2006, 79% of Latinos who were online had internet access at home, while in 2008, this number was 81%. 

So what does it all mean?  Well, amongst other things, simply that marketers have to start giving some thought on how to use digital media to reach Hispanics. That does not mean that Don Francisco and Univision go away.  It means that smart companies will begin shifting dollars where the growth is. 

We have a copy of the full report in the Marketing channel of this site.  You have to be registered in our site to access this channel, but you knew that right?