UK and global consumers overwhelmingly agree that online digital technology has positively impacted their lives according to the State of Digital Lifestyles research report from Limelight Networks, a provider of edge cloud services. The survey of consumers in nine countries shows digital device adoption is on the rise, but performance frustrations and security concerns remain.

Digital assistants such as Amazon Alexa and Google Home are increasingly popular, with 38 per cent of UK consumers owning one, up 68 per cent in the last year. However, digital assistants are still not considered an essential tool. Almost three-quarters (74.5 per cent) of UK owners of Alexa and other devices say they would be willing to give them up for at least a week and more than one in three (36 per cent) would be willing to stop using them permanently. Only 14 percent of UK owners said they couldn’t stop using their digital assistant. By comparison, 38 per cent of UK respondents said they would be unable to stop using their smart phone for even one day, and only 13 per cent would give them up permanently.

The growth of digital technology has created new concerns, with a significant number  (43 per cent) of UK consumers reporting they are more worried about personal information being stolen online than a year ago. Data privacy is also the number one concern about using digital assistants.

Additional consumer insights from the report include:

• Technology has had a positive impact on society. Most UK consumers (75 per cent) say online digital technology has improved their lives. Notably, a quarter (25 per cent) feel online digital technology has made a significant improvement in their lives.
• We are a Streaming Nation. Streaming has become the most common way to access digital media, with nearly three-quarters (73 per cent) of UK consumers choosing to stream movies and TV shows online rather than download or purchase physical copies and 61 per cent streaming music online rather than downloading or purchasing CDs.
• Frustrations with digital content remain, but some hope 5G might help. The vast majority (83 per cent) of UK consumers express frustrations with digital content. There is a strong expectation (68 per cent) that 5G will mean faster download speeds but still 1 in five (21 per cent) are sceptical that 5G will not have a major impact
• UK Consumers still enjoy offline experiences. Despite the growth in online activities, retail stores and cinemas remain popular with consumers. Over half of UK consumers (53 per cent) still prefer to shop at a physical retail store rather than online, and 31 per cent would rather watch a movie in a cinema instead of online or on TV.

“With the rapid growth of online content and new devices available to access it, digital media is playing an increasingly important role in our daily lives,” said Michael Milligan, Senior Director at Limelight Networks. “Our research reveals consumer expectations for high-quality digital experiences continue to rise, along with concerns about online security and unauthorised access to personal information. To increase customer loyalty and maximize revenue opportunities, digital content providers and device manufacturers must ensure their content distribution platforms and devices utilise a secure infrastructure that safeguards customer data while delivering a consistently fast and reliable user experience.”

The State of Digital Lifestyles report is based on responses from 4,500 consumers in France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, the UK, and the US age 18 and older who had downloaded software or streamed online video or music during the last month.

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