23% of U.S. Internet Users Already Own a Tablet

Today’s tablet users represent  31 percent of Internet users, up from 12 percent in 2011. Moreover, tablet ownership is expected to reach 47 percent of Internet users by 2013, according to a study conducted by Frank Magid Associates and sponsored by the Online Publishers Association. 


Accessing content and information was found to be the dominant activity on the device (94 percent), followed by accessing the internet (67 percent) and checking email (66 percent). 


The study also revealed that tablet users’ primary content-related activities include: watching video (54 percent), getting weather information (49 percent), and accessing national news (37 percent) and entertainment content (36 percent).


An earlier study had found 12 percent of the U.S. Internet population using tablets, the Online Publishers Association earlier found. 


As other studies have suggested, tablets are primarily content consumption devices. Some 87 percent of tablet users use their tablets to get access to content and information, the study found.


The earlier 2011 study suggested users now are broadly familiar with app downloads. Some 93 percent of tablet users have downloaded apps and the average tablet user has downloaded 20 apps.


Some 79 percent of app downloaders have paid for apps in the last 12 months, and 26 percent of all apps downloaded are paid apps. 


On average, those who have downloaded apps on tablets have spent $53 on apps in the past 12 months. 

Vonage Says VoIP Providers Should Get Direct Access to Numbers

Vonage has asked the Federal Communications Commission to allow it and other VoIP providers direct access to phone numbers, a move Verizon and AT&T say they support, so long as VoIP providers are subject to the same rules as the incumbents are. 


Competitive local exchange carriers object, on the grounds that VoIP providers would gain business advantage if the FCC were to grant the request. As typically is the case, the changes are viewed as conferring business advantage to some contestants, compared to others. 

Canadian Broadband More Expensive Than U.S. Broadband

Canada’s broadband fees were lower than those in the United States in 2007 to 2009, but as a result of large increases in usage during the past two years, and generally small usage caps, the average Canadian broadband subscriber paid 3.9 percent more in 2011 than the average U.S. subscriber did,  PwC report says.


Differences in average prices between nations and regions are not unusual, in any segment of communications. But the study does suggest that growing usage, smaller caps and the need to upgrade to bigger tiers of service are having an impact in the Canadian market. 

Medical Personnel Conflicted about Mobile Health Apps and Services

A recent consumer survey conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit found consumers more convinced of the value of mobile health technologies than health providers.

Roughly half of consumers predict that within the next three years, mobile health will improve the convenience (46 percent), cost (52 percent) and quality (48 percent) of their healthcare.

But 60 percent of consumers said they believe doctors are not as interested in mobile health as patients and technology companies are, PwC reports.

About 64 percent of doctors and payers said that mobile health business models are unproven. And some would say that apparent consumer interest does not translate well into actual sustained usage. The study found that more than 66 percent of consumer respondents who have used mobile wellness or fitness applications with manual data entry discontinued it after the first six months.

Some 13 percent of physicians actually discourage use of mobile health apps. Also, some 42 percent of doctors worry that mobile health options will make patients “too independent.”

Also, it appears that mobile heatth might actually reduce patient visits, which has negative revenue implications for health professionals.

Among consumers who already are using mHealth services, 59 percent said they have replaced some visits to doctors or nurses. Also, although more convenient access to their doctor or healthcare provider is seen as a mobile health advantage by 46 percent of respondents, some 43 percent believe it w2ill reduce out-of-pocket healthcare costs. That means less revenue for health professionals.

Burger King Corp. Tests Closed Loop Mobile Payment App

Burger King Corp. has launched a pilot program to test its new mobile payment application in select restaurants in the Salt Lake City, Utah, area., using a closed loop approach similar to what Starbucks does, signing up users to a branded prepaid card, then linking linking the mobile app to the card. 


The "BK Mobile Crown Card" program will be tested at about 50 restaurants in Salt Lake City, Utah area. The test will use quick response codes as the communication method between iOS and Android devices and the point of sale terminals. 


All such experiments are early versions of what might someday be more elegant in approach. The difference between scanning a prepaid card, a standard credit or debit card, and using a mobile that does the same thing, might not be so compelling that most people will want to do it. But the behavior is probably the key reason for using such approaches.


Getting people used to the idea of using a mobile as a payment mechanism is a habit that will have to be created. 

Tablet Gamers are Older

The average age of a U.S. or U.K. mobile device owner who has played a game on the device in the past month (”mobile gamer”) is 39.5, while among those only playing games on a tablet, the average age is 44.7, according to PopCap. That is not too surprising, if you assume older people can afford a tablet more easily than younger consumers. 


Some 16 percent of mobile gamers are 55 or older, while roughly two thirds are less than 45 years old.

Mobile Phones Key to Reaching U.S. "Underbanked" Consumers

There is good reason to believe that mobile devices could become a key means for "unbanked" consumers in U.S. markets to avail themselves of banking functions. The reason is the substantial use of mobile devices by "underbanked" consumers, according to Javelin Strategy and Research. 


Though mobile payments and mobile wallet efforts are seen as the bigger part of mobile financial services opportunities, there is a substantial opportunity to reach people who do not have checking or bank accounts.


Javelin defines the "underbanked" as U.S. adults without a checking account, while unbanked consumers do not have a banking account. 


There are an estimated 35 million U.S. adults (15 percent of the U.S. population) in those categories.

Is YouTube the Future of Smaller "Cable Channels?"

As cable operators and other video distributors grapple with ways to limit the cost of some packages, in response to growing consumer unhappiness with the cost of subscription video, will YouTube emerge as a primary distribution partner for smaller networks that might find themselves unable to gain or keep carriage on cable, telco or satellite video services?


Some, including YouTube, think so. YouTube is exploring selling subscriptions to access to some of its video offerings, potentially providing a way for certain cable channels to be available outside the traditional "bundles" offered by cable network providers, said YouTube CEO Salar Kumangar. 


Cable channels with smaller audiences will have a tougher time gaining carriage as video distributors create lower-cost tiers of service offering fewer channels, one might argue. If so, those network might be forced to seek carriage on platforms such as YouTube. 

Tablets Reach Critical Mass in U.S. Market

Tablets have quickly reached a critical mass in the U.S. with almost 20 percent of all  smart phone owners using tablets during the three-month average period ending April 2012. 


A study also found that tablet users were nearly three times more likely to watch video on their device compared to smart phone users, with one in every 10 tablet users viewing video content almost daily on their device, according to comScore. 


“Tablets are one of the most rapidly adopted consumer technologies in history and are poised to fundamentally disrupt the way people engage with the digital world both on-the-go and perhaps most notably, in the home,” said Mark Donovan, comScore SVP of Mobile.


For many app and content providers, the key development is creation of an additional "screen" for content consumption, joining TVs, PCs and smart phones. 

Tablet Users Among Mobile Audiences 3 month avg. ending Apr. 2012 vs. Apr. 2011  Total U.S. Mobile Subscribers (Smartphone & Non-Smartphone), Ages 13+  Source: comScore MobiLens
	% of Audience that Uses Tablet
	Apr-11	Apr-12	Point Change
Total Mobile (Feature Phone & Smartphone)	4.7%	16.5%	11.8
Smartphone Only	9.7%	23.6%	13.9
Feature Phone Only	2.3%	10.4%	8.1

Tablets are Shopping Platforms

More than half of tablet owners surveyed by Zmags in January 2012 reported shopping on their tablets at least once per week and 12 percent shopped daily. Already, nearly 30 percent of Internet users owns a tablet, and that should grow to more than 50 percent sometime in 2014 or 2015. 

Offers are Where Mobile Wallet Value Lies, Says Isis

The value of a mobile wallet is in the data-driven offer and coupon systems that allow consumers to save money, and "Isis does not directly deliver any of that value," says Jim Stapleton, Isis chief sales officer. That isn't to say Isis believes it does not add value, simply that the value comes as Isis is an enabler for its partners. 


Isis also emphasizes that it is a partner for banks, not a competitor. "At Isis, we're very much a platform provider for the banks," said Stapleton. 


Of course, not every contestant hopes to build a new business on offers, advertising, analytics or loyalty mechanisms. PayPal has been in the payments business, and wants to extend from online to offline. Square, Intuit and Sage also believe the revenue model is in handling payment transactions. 

Worldwide mobile payment transaction values will surpass $171.5 billion in 2012, a 61.9 percent increase from 2011 values of $105.9 billion, according to Gartner. 

The number of mobile payment users will reach 212.2 million in 2012, up from 160.5 million in 2011.

"We expect global mobile transaction volume and value to average 42 percent annual growth between 2011 and 2016, and we are forecasting a market worth $617 billion with 448 million users by 2016," says Sandy Shen, research director at Gartner. 

Mobile Devices will Pass PCs by about 2013

According to comScore, the number of mobile "computers" will pass desktop PCs sometime in 2013. 


Other forecasts suggest roughly the same thing, given sales trends. 

Cord Cutting Might Only Save a User About $10 a Month?

The point of video cord cutting typically is to "save money." So what potential savings might exist if a user with cable TV service quite that subscription, then signed up for a service such as Aereo, providing off-air signals, plus some content from Netflix or iTunes?


About $10 a month, says Barclays media analyst Anthony DiClemente. According to the Barclays analyst, users also have to factor in the higher costs of an unbundled broadband connection as well. 


Some might disagree. DiClemente uses a a cable TV charge of  $60 a month, which many users will find too low, substituting an $80 to $100 a month figure, instead. . In that case, a user might well save $30 a month to $50 a month for an alternative over the top approach. 

The Long Tail of Mobile App Purchases

It looks as though there is a "long tail" or Pareto distribution to mobile app purchases. According to a U.S. consumer survey conducted by ABI Research​, about two thirds of app users have spent money on an application on at least one occasion. Among these paying users, the mean spend was $14 per month. 


“The median amount among the consumers who spend money on apps is much lower than the average, just $7.50 per month," says Aapo Markkanen, ABI Research senior analyst . 


"The highest-spending three percent of all app users account for nearly 20 percent of the total spend, while over 70 percent spends either nothing or very little,” he says. 

PwC Data Shows Why Verizon Wireless Pricing Moves Make Sense

The new Verizon Wireless pricing plans, which make U.S. domestic voice and text messaging unlimited and a part of the basic subscription, while shifting the variable cost of service entirely to the mobile data plan, make sense. 


Consumer spending on broadband access is climbing at a robust 15-percent annual rate. With a continuing shift to consumption of video, the rate of consumption could increase even faster. So it makes sense that Verizon Wireless would want to shift pricing to a mode where data usage is variable, as that is where the additional costs of providing service will grow.