Consumers Say Digital Tech Has Had Positive Impact

Global consumers overwhelmingly agree that online digital technology has positively impacted their lives according to the “State of Digital Lifestyles” research report from Limelight Networks (Nasdaq: LLNW), a leading provider of edge cloud services. The survey of consumers in nine countries shows digital device adoption is on the rise, but performance frustrations and security concerns remain.

Digital assistants such as Amazon Alexa and Google Home are increasingly popular, with 28 percent of worldwide consumers owning one, up 47 percent in the last year. Although the use of digital assistants is growing, they are still not considered an essential tool by most consumers with more than 65 percent saying they would be willing to give them up for at least a week and 26 percent willing to stop using them permanently. Comparatively, when asked how long they could stop using mobile phones, 48 percent of global consumers said they would be unable to stop using them for even one day, and only 7 percent would give them up permanently.

The growth of digital technology has created new concerns, with nearly half (46 percent) of worldwide consumers reporting they are more worried about personal information being stolen online than a year ago. For digital assistants, 47 percent of global consumers expressed concerns about data privacy.

Additional consumer insights from the report include:

• Technology has had a positive impact on society. The overwhelming majority (80 percent) of global consumers say online digital technology has improved their lives. Notably, over one-third (35 percent) feel online digital technology has made a significant improvement in their lives. Technology has had the biggest positive impact in India, where 94 percent say it has brought about an improvement.
• Many people interact with digital media daily. Every day, 39 percent of global consumers listen to digital music and 33 percent download or watch movies and TV shows online. Streaming has become the most common way to access digital media, with two-thirds choosing to stream movies and TV shows online rather than download or purchase physical copies and 58 percent streaming music online rather than downloading or purchasing CDs.
• Frustrations with digital content remain, but consumers are hopeful for improvements with 5G. The vast majority (86 percent) of worldwide consumers express frustrations with accessing Digital content online, but nearly three-quarters (72 percent) expect 5G networking will bring faster download speeds. Consumer awareness of 5G networking varies from a high of 97 percent in South Korea to a low of 71 percent in Japan.
• Consumers still enjoy offline experiences. Despite the growth in online activities, retail stores and movie theaters remain popular with consumers. Nearly half of global consumers (49 percent) still prefer to shop at a physical retail store rather than online, and more than one-third (39 percent) would rather watch a movie in a theater instead of online or on TV.

“With the rapid growth of online content and new devices available to access it, digital media is playing an increasingly important role in our daily lives,” said Michael Milligan, Senior Director at Limelight Networks. “Our research reveals consumer expectations for high-quality digital experiences continue to rise, along with concerns about online security and unauthorized access to personal information. To increase customer loyalty and maximize revenue opportunities, digital content providers and device manufacturers must ensure their content distribution platforms and devices utilize a secure infrastructure that safeguards customer data while delivering a consistently fast and reliable user experience.”

The State of Digital Lifestyles report is based on responses from 4,500 consumers in France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and the United States age 18 and older who had downloaded software or streamed online video or music during the last month. The full report is available here.