Transcript Mobile is the Needle, Social is the Thread How Information Today is Woven Into Our Lives Kristen Purcell, Ph.D. Associate Director, Research Pew Internet Project Radiodays Europe March.

Mobile is the Needle,
Social is the Thread
How Information Today is Woven
Into Our Lives
Kristen Purcell, Ph.D.
Associate Director, Research
Pew Internet Project
Radiodays Europe
March 15-16, 2012
Barcelona, Spain
• Part of the Pew Research Center, a nonpartisan “fact tank” based
in Washington, DC
• PRC’s mission is to provide high quality, objective data to thought
leaders and policymakers
• Data for this talk is from nationally representative telephone
surveys of U.S. adults and teens (on landlines and cell phones)
• Presentation slides and all data are available at pewinternet.org
Internet Use in the U.S. in 2000
46% of US adults used the internet
5% had home broadband connections
53% owned a cell phone
0% connected to internet wirelessly
0% used social network sites
__________________________
Information flowed mainly one way
Information consumption was a
stationary activity
Slow, stationary connections
built around a desktop
computer
The Internet in 2012
82% of US adults use the internet,
76% of whom are online on any
given day
2/3 have broadband at home
88% have a cell phone; 46% are
smartphone users
14% have a tablet computer
2/3 are wireless internet users
65% of online adults use SNS
Mobile devices have
fundamentally changed the
relationship between
information, time and space
Information is now
portable, participatory, and
personal
The Very Nature of Information Has Changed
Information
was…
Information
is…
Scarce
All around us
Expensive
Cheap or free
Shaped and controlled
by elites
Shaped and controlled by
consumers and networks
Designed for one-way,
mass consumption
Designed for sharing,
participation and feedback
Slow moving
Immediate
External to our worlds
Embedded in our worlds
Information is Woven Into Our Lives
Mobile is the needle, Social Networks are the thread
Mobile…
Social Networks…
Moves information
with us
Surround us with
information through our
many connections
Makes information
accessible ANYTIME
and ANYWHERE
Puts information at
our fingertips
Magnifies the demand
for timely information
Makes information
location-sensitive
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 is the Needle: 88% of US Adults Have a Cell Phone
% in each age group who have a cell phone
46% of US adults now own
smartphones, up from 35%
in Spring 2011
Highest among young adults:
Teen data July 2011
Adult data Feb 2012
67% of 18-24 year-olds
71% of 25-34 year-olds
Mobile is the Needle That Weaves Information Throughout Our World
% of US adult cell owners who use their phones to…
Overall, if you had to use one single word to describe how you feel about
your cell phone, what would that one word be?
How Phones Function In Our Lives
% of US adult cell owners who had done each of the following in the past 30 days…
Tablet and E-reader Use is Growing
Percent of US adults 18+ who own each type of gadget…
88%
57%
Cell Phone
Laptop
55%
Desktop
14%
14%
Tablet
Computer
e-Reader
Based on Pew Internet Tracking Surveys, 2011-2012
Tablet and e-reader ownership is highest among….
 college graduates
 adults with household incomes of $75,000+
Tablet ownership
rose from
4% to 14%
between
September 2010
and
February 2012
Apps: From Superhighway to Bypass
One in three US adults download apps to a cell phone or tablet computer
Apps provide direct connections to information
% of app downloaders who have downloaded each type of app…
App downloading
is highest among
young adults age 18-29
Based on August 2011 Pew Internet Tracking Survey
Into the Future: Apps and Augmented Reality
Social Networks are the Threads That Connect Us
65% of US adults use social
networking sites
Consistent rates across gender,
race/ethnicity, and income groups
Why We Use Social Networks
Social Networks and Social Cohesion
A Pew study finds that
contrary to fears the
internet isolates
people...
• Facebook users
are more trusting
than other adults
• Facebook users
have more close
relationships
• Facebook users
get more social
support than
other adults
For networked individuals, information is embedded
and ambient
Social Networks Give Rise to “News Participators”
In January 2010, 37% of internet users
contributed to, commented on, or disseminated
news content via SNS
71% got news/info through email or SNS posts
_________________________________________________
In January 2011, 41% of adults were
“local news participators”
Share links to local stories/videos
Comment on local news stories/blogs
Post information about their community on SNS
Contribute to online discussions about their community
“Tag” or categorize local content
Post articles/photos/videos about their community
Most Popular Online Sources for News and Information
Portal Sites
56%
TV News Org Site
46%
Special Topic Site
38%
Newspaper Site
38%
Indiv or Org on SNS
Int'l News Org site
30%
18%
% of online news consumers who use each source
on a typical day
Based on Jan 2010 Pew Internet Survey
The Culture of Shared Information
Popular features of online news sites….
68
Links to related material
72
48
Multi-media content
57
48
Portal/News aggregator
55
44
Easily share content
57
42
Customize news
48
38
Interactive material
45
37
Ability to comment
51
25
Follow on soc media
39
Total
18-29
Based on Jan 2010 Pew Internet Survey
The most
popular
features allow
people to
interact with,
share, and
customize
their
information.
This is
especially true
for young
adults.
Information is Directly Embedded
in Our Environments
Convergence of physical and
digital worlds
The Internet
of Things
Networked objects
Immersive environments
Information is no longer external to our world,
but woven into its very fabric
All data available at pewinternet.org
Kristen Purcell, Ph.D.
Associate Director, Research
Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project
[email protected]
Twitter:
@pewinternet
@kristenpurcell