Connected iPhone & iPod Touch Users Download Most Content
When it comes to downloading software applications, music, video, and other entertainment content from mobile devices other than home computers, iPhone and iPod Touch users lead the pack. According to the NPD Group’s "Entertainment Trends in America" update, 75 percent of iPhone and iPod Touch users are connecting to the Web to download entertainment content and apps. By comparison, only 19 percent of game console users and 17 percent of Blu-ray Disc (BD) set-top product users are downloading content.
“It’s not surprising that Apple users are ahead of others when it comes to downloading Web-based content, given the breadth of the company’s app catalog and the head start iTunes had selling music for the iPod,” said Russ Crupnick, entertainment industry analyst for NPD. “Like other groups of early adopters, consumers downloading entertainment content are mostly younger and male; however, as app stores expand beyond Apple, as connected devices become more commonplace, and as connectivity is simplified we expect to see more activity on other devices and platforms.”
The consumer tracking surveys also revealed that 16 percent of Americans age 13 or older are using devices other than a home computer to download content from the Web. So what are people downloading? Free apps top the list, followed by video-game apps and music downloads. Game console users most frequently downloaded game add-ons followed by downloads of entire games and movie rentals. One-third of connected Blu-ray Disc (BD) consumers downloaded a movie rental.
“Music now competes with games and other apps for share of device, share of wallet, and share of time,” Crupnick said. “Entertainment companies need to start to thinking of apps in broader terms, not only as a way of garnering direct sales from downloads, but also as a pathway to paying for additional entertainment content. For example, an app that reviews movies could also be a direct channel for purchasing DVDs, BDs, or digital forms of video.”
