Advanced Television

37% of PC users migrate viewing to mobile devices

February 7, 2013

Content that was once primarily accessed by consumers on their PCs, is shifting to mobile devices. According to the Connected Intelligence Application and Convergence Report from global information company, The NPD Group, 37 per cent of consumers who used to access content on their PCs switched to their tablets and smartphones.

The top two activities that consumers are shifting from their PCs to their tablets and smartphones are web browsing and Facebook.  Among tablet owners, 27 per cent say they are using their PC less frequently for accessing the Internet and 20 per cent say they are using their PC less frequently for accessing Facebook. Twenty-seven percent of smartphone owners have decreased both their Internet and Facebook usage on their PCs because they now use their smartphone for these activities.

Consumers are still using their computers for many of the core PC-centric activities, but the tablet and smartphone are gaining traction.  Internet browsing is still highest among PC owners at 75 per cent, smartphones at 61 per cent, and tablets at 53 per cent.  Facebook interaction follows the same rank with PC owners at 63 per cent, 55 per cent for smartphone owners and 39 per cent among tablet owners.

And, it’s not just mobile devices that are drawing attention from the computer; 21 per cent of consumers that have a TV connected to the Internet are now switching from their computer to using their TV to watch video from streaming services such as Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Instant Video.

“Despite these shifts in behaviour, computers will remain the fundamental content creation device in consumer’s tool box for many years to come,” said John Buffone, director of devices, Connected Intelligence.  “Consumers, however, are switching their entertainment-centric behaviours to tablets, smartphones, and connected TVs at warp speed.  During 2013 this trend will be further perpetuated as more mobile devices become enabled with screen sharing technologies such as AllShare and Miracast that allow users to bridge their mobile devices to their TV screens.”

Categories: Articles, Consumer Behaviour, Equipment, Mobile, Portable Media, Research