The thinking was that, with many people stuck in front of computers at office jobs, the Web would be a more convenient way to watch the speech than TV, but initial reports from sites like Ustream, which publishes live video streams, and Trendrr, which tracks online buzz, show Woods' apology, for his marital indiscretions did not get as much attention from Internet audiences as President Obama's inauguration, Michael Jackson's funeral or even the red carpet preview for the Twilight movie sequel "New Moon." More than 680,000 people have watched the 15-minute event on Ustream, according to that site's spokeswoman, Shari Foldes, who said viewership would have been higher had Woods' statement not been so brief.

By comparison, 4.6 million Ustream viewers have watched last summer's live memorial service for pop star Michael Jackson, which lasted about an hour and a half. According to the Web site Trendrr, more than 1,000 Twitter posts per minute contained the word "Tiger" during the speech.