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Strategy

Users Consume 60% Digital Media on Small Screens

With more U.S. users getting information via smartphones and tablets, content producers need to keep their content bite sized for easy mobile consumption.

More users are getting information on smartphone screens and tablets than ever before, and this extends to more online consumption via mobile apps over websites. In fact, 60 percent of U.S. digital media time is spent on smartphones and tablets, according to comScore, and much of it is fueled by apps.
The implication for content creators is this: Keep your content bite sized for easy mobile consumption on the go.
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For many digital consumers, their smartphone or tablet has become their primary means for reaching the Internet, not their desktop, thanks to advances in 4G data-speed processor chips.
As the number of mobile-only users rise (11.3 percent), desktop-only users are falling (10.6 percent), according to comScore. Although a majority of U.S. Internet users (78 percent) still go online via both desktop and mobile platforms, Pew Research Center finds nearly 20 percent rely on their smartphone for accessing the Internet because they either lack broadband at home or their smartphone is their primary online option.
In fact, Pew finds 7 percent of Americans own a smartphone but lack either traditional broadband service at home or an easily available alternative for going online other than their smartphone. These smartphone-dependent digital consumers tend to be young adults, non-whites and those with lower incomes and education attainment levels, Pew finds.
While online mobile use focuses on texting, talking and emailing, a majority of Americans also use their mobile phones to obtain information, including catching up with the news and researching a health condition. More than half (55 percent) told Pew they obtained news on their smartphone at least once over the course of Pew’s one-week survey period. Also, 62 percent reported using their smartphone to obtain information about a health condition in the past year.
The Numbers
60: Percentage of U.S. digital media time spent on smartphones and tablets
11.3: Percentage of mobile-only users
10.6: Percentage of desktop-only users
78: Percentage of U.S. Internet users accessing online content via both desktop and mobile platforms
19: Percentage of U.S. Internet users relying on their smartphones to access online content
7: Percentage of Americans who own a smartphone but lack either traditional broadband service at home or an easily available alternative for going online
55: Percentage of Americans who obtained news on their smartphone at least once over the course of Pew’s one-week survey period
62: Percentage of Americans who used their smartphone to obtain information about a health condition in the past year

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