Consumer mobile usage to increase dramatically by 2015

Access the full research here (IAB members only)

Research released by the Internet Advertising Bureau UK (IAB) reveals global consumer usage patterns into how people will be using technology in the near future across the UK, US and South Korea. The study was carried out in partnership with research agency Crowd DNA and consisted of three global surveys interviewing over 2000 consumers and a panel of seven industry experts from the likes of Microsoft, O2, Mediacom and Poke.

How does the UK compare?

The research revealed that currently, UK consumers demonstrate the highest emotional connection with their mobiles with 62% claiming to struggle to imagine life without their mobile and using them more to go online than to call / text than the US (59%)

The study revealed that South Korean’s (28%) use their mobiles more to go online more on a daily basis compared to the UK (23%) and the US (13%). However consumers in the UK have the strongest emotional connection with their mobile phones, with 59% of UK consumers claiming ‘they couldn’t live without their mobile’ compared to 53% in the US and 31% in South Korea.

Although 51% of UK consumers currently say they were satisfied with their smartphones, only 26% of South Korean consumers felt satisfied with their mobile device, suggesting their technology expectations are higher than those of UK consumers. With UK smartphone penetration continuing to increase, the research suggests that we can expect similar heightened consumer expectations over mobile technology in the UK in the coming years.

UK leading the way in tablet penetration

The study indicated that tablet usage and penetration in the UK (35%) on a daily basis is higher than that of the US (31%) or South Korea (15%) with consumers in the UK expressing a greater connection with their tablet device. South Korean consumers are using their tablet the least to go online but are the most likely to agree that their future usage will increase.

Future facing concepts

Consumers were asked to rank a range of mobile technologies according to what appealed to them most. Three concepts came out on top: mobile wallet, mobile optimised websites and cloud based storage, 74% of UK consumers felt that the mobile wallet was an appealing new concept. However they felt that mobile optimised websites and cloud based storage are most likely to become a reality in the near future. 

IAB’s senior mobile manager, Alex Kozloff said: “By combining consumer research and industry expert opinion, we have a unique insight into what we can expect from mobile in the next couple of years. It surprised us to see that the UK was actually leading the way in tablet usage out of the countries we surveyed. This is further proof that advertisers and publishers must make mobile and tablets an integral part of their strategy.”

Crowd DNA’s managing director, Andrew Crysell said: "The IAB presented us with a great opportunity to produce a striking piece of research work - one which clearly demonstrates that mobile, remaining a device that we all have very strong personal connections with, is viewed as increasingly powerful by consumers. People are demanding more and more from their mobiles and tablets. The pressure is definitely on brands and media owners to really deliver in this area, and this research provides valuable pointers."

View the research here.