A recent BBC News report gives some interesting figures regarding the iTunes Music Store.

It seems that, according to statistics gathered by Nielsen NetRatings, 2005 saw an increase of 241% in iTunes Music Store traffic. In December 2004 there were 6.1 million people using the service and in December 2005 that number reached 20.7 million. The numbers mean that a staggering 14% of the Internet's active population is regularly using the iTunes service.

"Consumers have clearly indicated that they are eager to control their own music libraries, one song at a time," said Jon Gibs, director of media analytics at Nielsen NetRatings.

Of the people using Apple’s service, a vast majority are teenagers between the ages of 12 and 17, of which 54% are male. Other curious facts include the affinity of iTunes Music Store users towards Volkswagen, they being 2.2 times more likely to own one than the average Internet user. Other cars popular with regular users of the Apple Store are Audi and Subaru. The most popular alcoholic drink was cider followed by imported beers, while the top favorite magazine among iTunes lovers was, unsurprisingly, Wired.

This huge growth is likely to be seen again over 2006 as more people start using the service, not only for music but also for video content. The new type of media, combined with the steady stream of content that comes to the iTunes Music Store, not to mention the flawless integrative iPod + iTunes + iTunes Music Store experience, will continue to entice users.