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Recent studies of the online population have either focused on individual behavior or on a particular demographic within the population as a whole - the online personality types that have emerged don't necessarily reflect the reality. Is it really just a world dominated by MySpace teens, obsessive gamers and technophiles?

Netpop|Portraits, a new research report on the U.S. broadband population from strategic market research firm Media-Screen, slices and dices users into five distinct segments (via ClickZ):

1. The Content King: Content Kings value entertainment, creating their own entertainment experiences from both established and user generated content sources. Some 76 percent regularly play games online; 75 percent visit websites for personal reasons, spending more than 2.5 hours on a typical weekday.

2. The Social Clicker: Social Clickers particularly value communications. The group relies on the internet to maintain relationships with friends and family, as well as to seek out new ones. Some 78 percent contribute to internet content or information in a typical month; they spend 57 percent of their time going online for communications.

3. The Online Insider: Online Insiders value every aspect of the web with equal enthusiasm and see the internet as a rich personal and cultural phenomenon. This group tend to be early adopters. Some 86 percent contribute to internet content or information.

4. The Fast Tracker: Fast Trackers particularly value news and information, including news, sports and weather. This segment is particularly loyal to sources that provide frequent updates and real-time information: 77 percent regularly read news online.

5. The Everyday Pro: Everyday Pros value personal productivity and incorporate the efficiency of the internet into executing their daily tasks: 84 percent regularly bank online; 68 percent regularly shop online.

Turns out that a campaign focussed around MySpace, YouTube and Second Life wouldn't be the universal panacea for online marketers. The challenge, as ever, with segmentation studies: having identified the segments, how can they be reached in meaningful, measurable ways?