The 1% rule, or how many people actually participate in UGC

Finally! A lead on the numbers of content creators (rather than content consumers)in this thing we call social cyberspace! Charles' summertime article from The Guardian has just come to my attention, and so I share it with you in response to countless requests for information on how many people actually contribute UGC to community sites and how many simply lurk.

It's an emerging rule of thumb that suggests that if you get a group of 100 people online then one will create content, 10 will "interact" with it (commenting or offering improvements) and the other 89 will just view it.

It's a meme that emerges strongly in statistics from YouTube, which in just 18 months has gone from zero to 60% of all online video viewing.

The information I've been waiting for. Hurrah!

Further insight is always welcomed.