Research Round-up: Tablets, Location Services, Smartphones

Research Roundup: Tablets, Location Services, Smartphones

Over the past week I found several interesting research reports covering a variety of areas including: Online media, digital trends, and social media.  We want to hear from you, so please read, comment and share.

Citizens Want More Digital Government (04/26/2012) – Globally, citizens would like to see an increase in digital government services, according to a new survey by Accenture. The Digital Citizen Pulse Survey found half of respondents find it easy to interact with government and close to a third say it is easier to access government services than those from the private sector. In addition,  seventy percent indicated they  use the Internet for submitting and tracking government forms and payments and more than half  say they want to use more online channels. Examples of digital public services that citizens would like to see include:

• 70% want electronic reminder services,
• 69% want emergency alerts, and
• 59% would like secure identification-as-a-service

Consumers Prefer Smartphones (03/29/2012) There is a clear consumer shift from feature phones to smartphones, according to Nielsen. About half of all Americans had smartphones in February 2012 compared to 36% in February 2011. Over two thirds of all buyers are now choosing a smartphone over a feature phone and half of them are over 50.

Tablets: The Alternative to TV (04/17/2012) Tablets have emerged as the “go to” alternative to TV according to a study from Viacom, Tapping into Tabletomics.  The study also found tablet owners have an emotional connection to their tablet, unlike any other device.

• 50% of respondents said their tablet makes them feel happier and more relaxed,
• 49% said tablets make them more effective, and
• 39% said tablets boost creativity

Location Services Go Mainstream (04/24/2012) Almost a fifth of the world’s 6 billion mobile consumers use location based services and two thirds of non-users aspire to do so. TNS’s Mobile Life study found half of those surveyed want location services to navigate via maps and GPS. Other reasons include:

• 22% want to find friends
• 26% want to find restaurants
• 19% want to check public transportation, and
• 14% want to find special deals and offers