PewInternet.org

The State of Mobile Connectivity

Lee Rainie, Director, Pew Internet Project

8.15.12

Handheld Librarian

Email: Lrainie@pewinternet.org

Twitter: @Lrainie

The Very Nature of Information Has Changed

All around us

Cheap or free

Shaped and controlled by consumers and networks

Designed for sharing, participation and feedback

Immediate

Embedded in our worlds

Scarce

Expensive

Shaped and controlled by elites

Designed for one-way, mass consumption

Slow moving

External to our worlds

Information was…

Information is…

Information is Woven Into Our Lives

Mobile is the needle, Social Networks are the thread

Social Networks…

Surround us with information through our many

connections

Bring us information from multiple, varied sources

Provide instant feedback, meaning and context

Allow us to shape and create information ourselves and amplify others’ messages

Mobile…

Moves information with us

Makes information accessible ANYTIME and ANYWHERE

Puts information at our fingertips

Magnifies the demand for timely information

Makes information location-sensitive

Overall, if you had to use one single word to describe how you feel about your cell phone, what would that one word be?

331.6

Total U.S. population: 315.5 million

2011

The basics: 88% of adults have mobile devices

Mobile is the Needle: 88% of US Adults Have a Cell Phone

Teen data July 2011 Adult data Feb 2012

% in each age group who have a cell phone

Smartphone tipping point -- 46%

Smartphones – 46%

66%

53%

35%

22% 20% 3%

0%

20%

40%

60%

Millennials (18-34)

Gen X (35-46)

Younger Boomers (47-56)

Older Boomers (57-65)

Silent Generation

(66-74)

G.I. Generation

(75+)

An internet device

17% use mobile as primary or exclusive online connection device

– 45% of those ages 18-29

– 51% of blacks

– 42% of Latinos

– 38% of those in HH earning less than $50K

56% of adults own laptops –

up from 30% in 2006

44% of adults own MP3 players –

up from 11% in 2005

52% of adults own DVRs –

up from 3% in 2002

42% of adults own game consoles

19% of adults own e-book readers – Kindle

Doubles over holiday season

19% of adults own tablet computer – iPad

Doubles over holiday season

Cell phones as connecting tools

2/22/2011 12

% of cell owners

• 64% send photo or video

– Post video 25%

• 55% access social net. site

• 30% watch a video

• 11% have purchased a product

• 11% charitable donation by text

• 60% (of Twitter users) access Twitter

Location services % of smartphone owners

12%

55%

18%

74%*

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Geosocial services Location-based information

services

May 2011 Feb 2012

Apps – 50% of adults

22% 29*

38 43

38* 43*

50*

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Download apps to their phone

Have preloaded apps on their phone

Total who have apps on phone

Sept 2009 May 2010 August 2011

56%

40%

25%

11% 4%

1%

0%

20%

40%

60%

Millennials (18-34)

GenX (35-46)

Younger Boomers (47-56)

Older Boomers (57-65)

Silent Generation (66-

74)

G.I. Generation (75+)

Apps downloaders by age

Apps provide direct connections to information

35%

46%

53%

64%

74%

Get more info about an event you're attending

Help shop or make purchases

Get info about a destination you're visiting

Learn about something you're interested in

News, weather, sports or stocks updates

Based on August 2011 Pew Internet Tracking Survey

Apps: From Superhighway to Bypass

Rise of “connected viewers” – 52% All cell owners • 38used their phone to keep themselves occupied during

commercials or breaks in something they were watching. • 22% used their phone to check whether something they

heard on television was true or not. • 6% of cell owners used their phone to vote for a reality

show contestant. Smartphone owners • 35% use phone to visit a of smasrtphonecell owners who

website that was mentioned on television • 20% used their phone to see what other people were

saying online about a program they were watching • 19% used their phone to post their own comments online

about a program they were watching

Cell phone uses % of cell users have done these things in past 30 days

• Coordinate a meeting or get-together – 41%

• Solve an unexpected problem that they or someone else had encountered – 35%

• Decide whether to visit a business, such as a restaurant – 30%

• Find information to help settle an argument they were having – 27%

• Look up a score of a sporting event – 23%

• Get up-to-the-minute traffic or public transit information to find the fastest way to get somewhere – 20%

• Get help in an emergency situation – 19%

Mobile health

• 17% of cell owners have used their phone to look up health or medical information; 29% of cell owners ages 18-29 have done such searches.

• 9% of cell owners have software applications or “apps” on their phones that help them track or manage their health; 15% of those ages 18-29 have such apps.

Mobile politics - 26% of adults used cell phones for political purposes in 2010

3/9/2011 21 Internet and Politics

• 14% used their cell phones to tell others that they voted

• 12% used their cell phones to keep up with political news

• 10% sent text messages relating to the election

• 6% used their cells to let others know about conditions at their local voting stations on election day

• 4% used their phones to monitor results on election night

• 3% used their cells to shoot/share photos/videos about election

• 1% used a cell-phone app that provided updates about election news

• 1% contributed money by text message

News and local news

All adults

84% own a cell phone and/or

tablet computer

47% get local news or information on their cell phone or

tablet

In-store purchasing decisions

34% 22% 22%

38%

25% 24%

0%

20%

40%

60%

Call a friend for advice about a purchase

Look up prices online of a product you found in a

store

Look up product reviews online of a product you

found in a store

% of all adults % of cell owners

How Phones Function In Our Lives

13%

27%

29%

42%

51%

30%

42%

32%

70%

64%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

Pretended to be using phone to avoid interacting with those around them

Had trouble doing something because they did not have phone with them

Turned phone off to get a break from using it

Used phone to entertain themselves while bored

Used phone to get information they needed right away

18-29 year-olds Total adults

% of US adult cell owners who had done each of the following in the past 30 days…

Thank you!