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The purpose of this paper is to analyze the role of interactivity with television (TV) personalities and audience members as mediating variables between teleshopping genre dependency and teleshopping behavior, and to identify the moderating effects of televiewers' instrumentalist behavior on teleshopping.

The Media Dependency Theory has been used as the conceptual framework of this study to explain teleshopping in terms of the relations of the individual with the teleshopping genre, TV personalities and audience members.

Data analysis performed using a sample of 432 Spanish teleshoppers shows that genre dependency has an indirect influence on teleshopping exposure, which in turn has a direct and positive effect on teleshopping behavior. The individual‐media relationships proposed are, in all cases, greater for high instrumentalist televiewers.

This research provides managers suggestions to increase teleshopping behavior. Managers responsible for TV content design should encourage specific viewing and purchase objectives so that they will attract an audience with instrumentalist motivations. They should also design attractive sales programs to retain the audience's attention and promote relationships with program hosts to increase relationships with TV personalities.

Previous research focused on individual media dependency has analyzed the antecedents and consequences of individual media‐genre dependency, but despite dramatic differences between instrumentalist and ritualist televiewers, very limited research has been conducted to examine them. This paper explains teleshopping in terms of the relations of the individual with the teleshopping genre, TV personalities and audience members, focusing on the moderating influence of televiewer's instrumentalist behavior.

To analyse key drivers of Internet dependency and its impact on willingness to purchase online.

The applicability of the media dependency scale is tested in the Spanish market. The impact of demographics, Internet exposure, online experience and Internet affinity on Internet dependency is analysed together with behavioural changes deriving from Internet dependency (willingness to purchase online).

Data analysis shows that the media dependency scale needs to be adapted to the Spanish market and Spanish Internet users show intermediate levels of Internet dependency. Dependent users are mainly young, highly‐educated, feel Internet affinity and have high levels of exposure and experience as Internet users. Internet dependency determines willingness to purchase online, with the most relevant factor being that of searching for information to take decisions.

This research enables companies to know the different objectives which Internet can help consumers to attain and, therefore, what aspects to highlight in their communication strategies. Internet agents should exploit the dimensions Internet offers to increase individual dependency and message effectiveness. The significant influence that searching for information exerts on willingness to purchase online shows managers that web contents become a key tool to increase future online purchases.

Despite dramatic online differences were discovered between Internet dependent and non‐dependent users, very limited research has been conducted to examine them. There are still not enough studies that analyse the effects of Internet dependency on the non‐purchasing Internet users behaviour. This paper analyses the background of Internet dependency and its influence on future purchase intentions of non‐buyer Internet users.