6 Million Have Downloaded Podcasts?

Reuters reports on a new survey by the Pew Internet & American Life Project on 'Podcasts' Catching on with iPod Owners.  Apparently 29% of adults that own MP3 players say they've downloaded podcasts, equating to 6 million people.  These consumers skewed younger with nearly half of those under 29 having tried podcasts vs. 20% of those older than 29. 

I don't buy it.

I wonder if all the buzz around Podcasting skewed the results.  The survey period, 2/21/05 - 3/21/005 was during the time when there were many prominent mentions of Podcasting in the mainstream media.

Also note that the sample size of 208 digital-media owners, while ample, wasn't huge.  Basically 58 or 59 people said they'd accessed a Podcast.

I've accessed Podcasts, but I'm skeptical about the numbers.  Why?  The UE of Podcastng and its content is still in the version 1.0 stage -- a little buggy and a little 'raw', though this is changing (e.g. KCRW & BBC now offer Podcasts of their programs). 

I actually think that there is a large gap between the hype and coverage that Podcasting has gotten to date, and the actual product available to consumers.  With that said, there are several companies out there that haven't yet launched that I'm sure will bridge this gap (not to mention companies like Clear Channel).  Finally, the folks that have accessed Podcasts, whatever that number is, will no doubt be a relatively young, early-adopter crowd that should attract tech-savvy advertisers.