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Report: U.S. Home Internet Adoption Rate Projected to Slow

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 23, 2006 - 3:21am.
Dallas - Of the estimated 39 million U.S. homes without Internet access, only 2 million said they are planning to subscribe in 2006, contributing to overall U.S. Internet adoption growth of just one percent in 2006, from 63% to 64%, according to a report from market research firm Parks Associates. Only 8 million of the 39 million homes without Internet access even own a computer, although 14 million reported having access to the Internet at work or other locations. Some 300,000 households said they might subscribe if services were cheaper. "We are clearly facing a problem of demand, not supply," said Parks Associates research director John Barrett. "Computers and Internet service have never been cheaper, yet many households still show little enthusiasm for the technology." The firm found that among households not interested in subscribing to an Internet service at any price, 31% said their Internet access at work was sufficient, while another 18% claimed, "I am not interested in anything on the Internet."
tags: Internet | U.S | Adoption | Rate | Project | Slow | Home |

Report: U.S., Europe Lag Behind Asia in Mobile Gaming Adoption

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 16, 2006 - 8:19am.
Dallas - Mobile phone users in the Asia-Pacific region are more avid consumers of mobile games than their European and North American counterparts, according to a report from market research firm Parks Associates. A survey found that 28% of consumers in the Asia-Pacific region played single-player mobile games on a weekly basis, compared with 13% in Europe and 8% in North America. In the nascent market for mobile multiplayer games, the survey found 7% played them weekly in the Asia-Pacific region, versus just 2% in both Europe and North America. "Cellular operators in North America and Europe are lagging behind their Asia-Pacific counterparts in mobile gaming, but they are starting to increase their focus on this area," said Parks Associates analyst Yuanzhe (Michael) Cai. "Large game publishers such as EA are also reevaluating market opportunities and investing heavily in the space, so with wider deployments of 3G mobile networks and the continued development of feature-rich handsets with gamer-friendly designs, these regions should be able to reduce the international gaming gap."
tags: Games | Mobile | Europe | Asia | Adoption | Behind | U.S. |

Report: Mobile Data Service Adoption Rises; Cost Remains Factor

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 3, 2005 - 3:36am.
Chicago - A global survey of 4,000 mobile phone users who subscribe to mobile data services found that over half now access the Internet monthly, and one-third download music to their phones, while mobile data costs are an obstacle to wider adoption, according to a report from management consulting firm A.T. Kearney. Thirty-three percent of users with multimedia phones said they downloaded music monthly, up from 21% in 2004, while 16% said they downloaded mobile games monthly. Seventeen percent of all users -- and 27% of those under 24 -- said they were interested in mobile TV. The survey also found that one-third of multimedia phone owners now use MMS to send pictures, photos and video clips monthly, a service that is used regularly by nearly half of all 19 to 24 year-olds. However, half of mobile users surveyed said they are not willing to pay more than $5 per month for a mobile data service; currently, U.S. mobile data services cost between $10 and $20 per month. "The growing penetration of new multimedia phones is the catalyst for mobile data adoption," said, A.T. Kearney vice president Mark Page. "There is a clear relationship between the average revenue per user and the age of the phone the customer uses. People who have recently replaced their handsets are more likely to be heavier users of data services."
tags: VC | Reports | Adoption | Mobiles |

SIIA Survey Finds State Progress Slow on Adoption of E-Textbooks

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on August 29, 2005 - 5:26am.
Washington -- The Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA), on Friday released the results of a survey that shows that digital textbooks and online educational materials are often getting bogged down in states' textbook approval processes. The survey found that only a handful of states have updated their review criteria to account for electronic materials. It also found that states are generally unwilling or unable to review materials more than once every six years, making it difficult for digital materials to get into schools. "We found that states are making progress in their support for an e-curriculum, but a lot of work remains in order to ensure that students have access to electronic resources that meet their learning needs -- and their expectations," said Mark Schneiderman, SIIA's director of education policy. "States are not yet keeping pace with changes technology can bring to the classroom."
tags: Adoption | Survey | SIIA | E-Textbooks |