Surge in Multi-Screen Viewing Revealed in MediaWorks Survey

28 March, 2014

Surge in Multi-Screen Viewing Revealed in MediaWorks Lifestyle Survey

New Zealanders own more smartphones and tablets, are doing more of their shopping online, and social media usage has increased. Viewing content on multiple screens is the norm for those surveyed; the majority have more than five screens available at home.

Education, health, family, house prices and the cost of living are the important issues for the respondents, and the next 12 months appears to be a relatively stable time – with people intending to remain in their current jobs and little change in housing.

These are some of the findings of the 2013 MediaWorks Lifestyle Survey, a major annual survey of the audiences of MediaWorks’ stable of television channels, radio stations, websites and social media communities.

An area of interest this year was the number of screens people have available to them at home, a measure of their access to content and opportunities for multiplatform and second screen viewing. More than half the respondents had five or more screens in their household, including televisions, computers, tablets, smartphones and Ipod Touch. A remarkable 14% have 10 or more screens available to household members.

This is the third year MediaWorks has surveyed its audiences, and the first time selected results have been made public. All 1.2 million members of MediaWorks’ family of websites were invited to take part, and responses were received from more than 34,000 members. The respondents have an age profile and regional spread in line with the general population, a gender split of 34% male, 66% female, and 77% identify as NZ European.

MediaWorks Director of Interactive, Siobhan McKenna says the survey is designed to gather audience data across a wide variety of topics not found in traditional research.

“MediaWorks is a market leader in how we understand and communicate with our audiences. Research is an increasingly important part of the business. Our network of websites provides congregation points for a variety of New Zealanders to hang out and communicate; from The Edge and The Rock, to 3 News and The Block NZ, to the more boutique and equally passionate audiences of Kiwi FM, MaiFM and George.

“By tapping into the 1.2 million members of these websites, we have a unique and powerful tool in really understanding our audiences, and how we can better deliver great content and experiences to these audiences and at the same time help our clients reach their business goals.”

The focus of this Survey was device ownership, social media usage and online shopping, along with investigating which issues are important to Kiwis and what is happening in their wider lives.

Mobile phone ownership is an area of rapid growth, with big year-on-year increases for smartphone ownership, and a sharp drop off in the ownership of standard mobile phones, as old handsets are replaced. Ownership of tablets has also risen significantly year-on-year, and respondents are living in households with multiple screens – televisions, tablets, computers and smartphones.

MediaWorks members do more online shopping than the general population (91% of respondents had shopped online in the last 12 months, compared with Nielsen’s reported 53% of the population), and online shopping at an international retailer had increased by 20% compared with 2012.

Social media usage has grown year-on-year, particularly for Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Google+ and YouTube. Facebook remains the most frequently used form of social media with 50% saying they use the site several times a day.

2013 MediaWorks Lifestyle Survey – Topline Results

Important issues for self, family and friends
• Education, health, family, house prices and the cost of living continued to be important issues in 2013 as they were in 2012 for our members.

Life events experienced in the last 12 months
• Slightly fewer members started new jobs in 2013 than did in the previous year – slower job market/fewer jobs to move to perhaps
• Fewer people moving house – cooling housing market / higher prices keeping people in the same home in 2013 tending to make major improvements, rather than move.
• A smaller percentage bought or built a home, yet there was an increase year on year

Life events expected in the next 12 months
• The next 12 months appears to be a relatively stable time – with people intending to remain in their current jobs and little change in housing – those that were going to move, buy or renovate did so last year.
• House sale intention sits at 6%, while house purchase comes in at 10% - possibly vendors cashing up in a tight market.
• Marriage intention is relatively low, but shows decreases year on year from 2011 to 2013

Frequency of social media use
• Social media usage by our members has increased year on year, particularly for Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Google+ and YouTube.
• Facebook is used the most frequently with 50% saying they use the site several times a day – similar levels to those seen in 2012.

Online shopping activity in the last four weeks
• 2013 saw in increase in the number of our members conducting both research and purchase online, rather than buying offline (at stores after online research)
• 56% of people have researched and purchased a product online in the last 4 weeks, an increase of 8% year on year.

Online purchasing in the last 12 months
• Overall, 91% of our members have shopped online in the last 12 months (compared with Nielsen’s reported 53% of the population)
• 80% of our members have shopped online at local sites in the last 12 months, an increase of 2% year on year.
• Online shopping from overseas retailers has seen a significant jump – now 55% of people have shopped an international site, up from 46% on the previous year.

Technology items in home
• The proportion of members who have a laptop or desktop computer in their homes has remained static year on year.
• Mobile device ownership has taken off in the last 12 months, with 35% of members having an ipad, 23% and Android tablet and 7% another type of tablet (compared with Nielsen’s 16% total tablet ownership figures)

Mobile phone ownership
• Smartphone penetration amongst our members continues to climb, with 39% owning an Android smartphone, 31% and iphone and 11% another type of smartphone.
• Standard (non-smart) mobile ownership has declined sharply as old handsets are replaced with smartphone handsets.

Number of screens in household
• 56% of respondents have five or more screens in their household, including televisions, computers, tables, smartphones and iPod Touch, giving them access to content on multiple platforms.
• A remarkable 14% have 10 or more screens available to household members.

ENDS

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