16% to 26% of U.S. Mobile Customers Use OTT Messaging At Least Once a Month

These days, it is hard to distinguish between use of text, voice and video features of over the top "VoIP" apps, but in many countries a majority of smart phone customers use an over the top messaging app during a typical month. 

In the U.S. market, perhaps 26 percent of smart phone users surveyed by Yankee Group use an over the top VoIP app once a month. About eight percent report using an app daily, while 10 percent report they do so at least weekly. 

Japanese smart phone panelists are the predominant users of Voice over IP (VoIP) applications on mobile devices, among seven countries tracked by Arbitron Mobile. That usage includes any messaging features of over the top VoIP apps.

Almost 70 percent of the smart phone panelists in Japan accessed VoIP apps during the month of January 2013, spending six hours and 25 minutes with voice and messaging apps. 

The Arbitron Mobile on-device software meter reported that VoIP users in the Japan smart phone panel accessed their VoIP apps an average of 222 times in the month, three times more than panelists in Indonesia, who at 65.9 sessions per month are the second most active users of VoIP apps across the seven Arbitron Mobile-based smart phone panels.

About 41 percent of Indonesia panelists use VoIP apps on their mobile devices, spending an average of 2 hours and 15 minutes a month.

China panelists are the least active users of VoIP apps. Only 16.4 percent of the China smart phone panel (operated by iResearch) accessed any VoIP apps in the month of January.

Panel	VoIP User %	VoIP Time Spent (minutes per month)	Sessions/Month
Japan	68.2%	386.5	222.4
Indonesia	40.9%	134.9	65.9
United Kingdom	22.1%	79.2	35.1
United States	16.5%	77.6	35.6
Germany	27.0%	68.1	31.8
France	17.4%	65.2	34.3
China	16.4%	26.6	27.2

source: Arbitron

Japanese smart phone panelists, the heaviest users of mobile VoIP, spend the least amount of time—one hour, 36 minutes in the month—and have the fewest sessions—57.8 in the month—for carrier-based voice calls. 

Indonesian panelists, the second heaviest users of VoIP are the second lightest user of their carrier calling minutes.           

Panel	VoIP Time Spent (minutes per month)	Voice Call Time Spent (minutes per month)
Japan	386.5	96.3
Indonesia	134.9	109.0
United Kingdom	79.2	242.3
United States	77.6	460.6
Germany	68.1	167.8
France	65.2	298.4
China	26.6	225.6

source: Arbitron

Three VoIP apps occupy the leading position among Arbitron smart phone panelists around the world. Skype predominates in U.S. and Europe; LINE leads in Japan and Indonesia; and Youxin is the leader in a crowded field of VoIP apps in China.

Panel	VoIP Apps	App User %	App Time Spent (minutes per month)	Number of Sessions/Month
Japan	LINE	64.2%	392.3	225.7
Indonesia	LINE	27.6%	156.0	79.7
United Kingdom	Skype	14.4%	52.9	23.9
United States	Skype	11.5%	64.1	22.5
Germany	Skype	17.1%	53.1	23.1
France	Skype	12.8%	44.5	19.1
China	Youxin	4.7%	16.5	21.4

Arbitron