Letter and telephone occupy the third and second use positions in terms of media types selected for use by the International information seeker. In this case, however, the choices made do not match the cost array exactly. Telephone is the top media choice, but letters are selected after e-mail as a media choice, for reasons that are not wholly explained. It could be that once a certain threshold of financial cost is crossed, a less rich medium is selected. These data, although based on informed speculation rather than empirical evidence, indicate that this is not the case.
Financial cost does appear to be a factor in media choice selection.
Choice of communication medium for the information seeker is a rational choice. Distance and geography affect the relative financial costs of different communications media and the media use choices made by information seekers. Distance and cost are interrelated in many ways, and in this discussion are lumped into very broad and non-specific categories to illustrate the point that financial cost matters. In addition, other situational factors may affect the information seeker's choice of media for communicating inquiries. These potential contextual constraints also deserve study to determine if financial cost constraint or one of the other factors is in fact a dominant or driving factor in media choice.