Second screens? They’re fast becoming ‘first screens’ in living rooms

• Laptops and smartphones used more often by more than 1/3 of consumers
• Set to continue living room domination: Irdeto research

THE use of laptops and smartphones is outpacing that of set-top boxes (STBs) and smart TVs in the connected living rooms of today, according to new global research from Irdeto.
 
The research reinforces a growing consumer trend of multi-screen usage and second screen devices becoming ‘first screens,’ with smartphones being the most used devices in living rooms in Singapore (56%), followed by PCs or laptops (39%), STBs (28%), tablets (27%), and smart TVs (26%).
 
In contrast, PCs or laptops are the most used devices in living rooms in Australia (43%), followed by smartphones (30%), tablets (24%), smart TVs (23%) and STBs (18%), Irdeto said in a statement.
 
The research found that PCs or laptops and smartphones are the two most frequently owned devices.
 
Device ownership is a clear driver for this living room domination, and shows no sign of slowing according to device purchase intentions over the next five years, the company said.
 
Unsurprisingly, in Singapore smartphones are the devices people are most likely to purchase in the next five years (49%). This is followed by PCs or laptops (40%), smart TVs (40%) and tablets (34%).
 
In Australia, PCs or laptops are the devices people are most likely to purchase in the next five years (36%). This is followed by smartphones (33%), smart TVs (28%) and tablets (28%).
 
“The traditional living room viewing experience is clearly evolving and will continue to do so over the next five years, further increasing the importance of a secure and compelling multi-screen offering for operators and OTT (over-the-top) players,” said Richard Scott, Irdeto senior vice president of sales and marketing.
 
“By harnessing the power of consumer insights, they will be able to tailor content and services to customers based on their changing viewing habits and device usage, and avoid losing customers in an increasingly competitive marketplace,” he added.
 
The research was commissioned by Irdeto and conducted online by YouGov among representative samples in each market, with over 5,000 adults in total taking part, to uncover trends in competition for the living room and consumer priorities.
 
The research was conducted in Australia, Singapore, the United Kingdom and the United States. Unless otherwise stated, all figures are from YouGov.
 
The sample size breakdown is: Australia (1,002 respondents); Singapore (1,004); United Kingdom (2,100);p and United States (1,179).
 
Fieldwork was undertaken from April 20-27, 2015.  The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all adults (aged 18+) in each country.
 
Additional trends uncovered by the research are:
 
Security and UX are key demands
 
In the current climate, the security of devices is the most important consideration for consumers, with the security of payment details stored on devices (88% in Singapore, 87% in Australia) and the security of personal information (90% in Singapore, 88% in Australia) as either very or fairly important.
 
This was followed closely by user experience, with 84% in Singapore and 79% in Australia identifying a good user experience from channel providers as important.
 
Meanwhile, 80% in Singapore and 71% in Australia rated availability of channels as important, while the connected home is considered a much higher priority in Singapore.
 
Also, 77% in Singapore rate the ability for devices to be connected with other appliances/ devices/ systems as important, as opposed to just 60% in Australia.
 
Smartphones infiltrate Singapore living rooms
 
While smartphone penetration and usage is high in all markets surveyed, they are the most used living room devices in Singapore (56%) and the most likely device purchase in the next five years (49%).
 
In contrast, only 36% of consumers in the United Kingdom, 32% in the United States, and 30% in Australia identified smartphones as the device they use most in the living room.
 
Furthermore, only 27% of UK respondents and 33% of both the US and Australian respondents  plan to buy a smartphone in the next five years.
 
For the full survey results on Singapore (PDF), click here.
 
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