Advanced Television

LatAm: 90% of connected people have smartphone

October 26, 2016

comScore and IMS Internet Media Services (IMS) have released the second edition of IMS Mobile in LatAm, a joint report on trends in digital consumption and mobile apps usage in six countries in the region (Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, Peru and Chile).

The report was based on results from an online survey of smartphone and tablet users aged 15 or older. The main objective was to measure the size of the audiences for specific mobile apps that generate impact in the region.

The principal findings are  :

  • 9 out 10 people connected to Internet in Latin America have a smartphone.
  • The survey concludes that sites within the IMS portfolio have a combined potential reach of 76 per cent of mobile users, representing the third largest digital advertising audience in the region after Google and Facebook

Here are some relevant highlights:

  • Android is the leading brand of smartphones in the region, with 81 per cent of respondents owning an Android smartphone. It also accounts for more than 70 per cent of tablet users.
  • 66 per cent of the smartphone users made a purchase from their devices within the past six months.
  • Chile and Brazil are the two countries with the largest number of purchases made from tablets.
  • A third of tablet users in Mexico have an iPad – the highest of all countries measured.
  • Nearly three quarters of mobile users in Colombia have Twitter installed on their smartphone or tablet.
  • Mobile users in Brazil, Colombia and Chile spend the most time connected on their smartphones per week.
  • 85 per cent of users in Argentina use their mobile devices for going to social networks sites on a regular basis.
  • Video, social media and messaging apps were the most popular among consumers with WhatsApp, YouTube, Facebook, Facebook Messenger, Google Maps, Instagram and Twitter topping the list.
  • Snapchat and Spotify in particular saw strong engagement among Millennials compared to the majority of other apps measured.
  • Smartphone consumption is highest amongst Millennials.

“The IMS Mobile in LatAm helps us better understand the Latin American mobile consumer and evaluates the familiarity and importance that apps – among them our 10 partners – have for Latin American users” said Gastón Taratuta, CEO & Founder of IMS. “For us is a real honour to reach this position in the market with all the platforms we partner. This means that we cover the main categories in the digital advertising environment in LatAm, as geolocation, entertainment, gaming and social”.

“The study confirm that smartphones are the go-to device for many consumers as we see people across the region turn to mobile for everything, and that Digital Media is where the consumers spend most of the time comparing to other platforms like TV, Print or Radio, so we expect that Advertisers will move their marketing effort and resources in the same way”, said Marcos Christensen, Senior Director of comScore Latin America South Cone.

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