Over Half of Tablet, Smartphone Time Is Shared with TV Viewing – New GfK Analysis

Among adults 35 to 49, two-thirds of all tablet minutes occur in front of a TV

New York, NY (April 12, 2012) – As advertisers and marketers look for the best ways to take advantage of an explosion in smartphone and digital tablet use, a new GfK analysis provides crucial new details on simultaneous use of these devices and other media.

The research by GfK Knowledge Networks shows that 52% of minutes spent with tablets, and the same percent for smartphones, were shared with TV viewing. Compared to young adults (ages 18 to 34), Baby Boomers (35 to 49) spent much more time using tablets and TV simultaneously – 67% of tablet minutes, versus 39% for the younger group.

Simultaneous use of smartphones and TV was about the same for both age groups – 52% of smartphone minutes for the younger group, versus 48% for the older.

"Tablets are the new ‘second screen,’ thanks to their size and inherent connectivity,” said Robert DeFelice, Vice President (Media) at GfK Knowledge Networks. "Our research suggests the potential value of ad campaigns and other applications that take advantage of the roles smartphones and tablets play as ‘co-located’ technologies; these might include researching advertised products, texting friends about plot twists, visiting TV program websites, and dozens of similar uses.”

The analysis also shows that women were more likely to combine tablets and TV – 56% of their tablet minutes were spent in front of a television, versus 48% for men. But the opposite was true for smartphones, with men at 59% and women at 48%.
Compared to non-owners, those who have tablets devoted 42 additional minutes to the Internet daily, and 52 added minutes to all media. They also spent almost twice as much time using the Internet via smartphones (40 minutes per day, compared to 22 minutes for people without tablets).

The new findings come from MultiMedia Mentor® -- a 14-year-old service tracking use of 8 major media – and are based on interviews with 2,621 members of KnowledgePanel®, the only commercially available online panel derived from a statistically projectable sample of the U.S. population. Interviewing for this latest wave of Mentor data was conducted between August 2011 and January 2012 with panel members ages 13 to 64.

In addition to time spent with media, the MultiMedia Mentor research captures hundreds of consumer characteristics, including use of product categories. Clients have on-demand, online access to Mentor findings through exclusive reporting and optimization software.
MultiMedia Mentor is also the basis for Total TouchSM, a custom, scalable solution for assessing consumer exposure and reactions across dozens of media, including out-of-home. ESPN and NBCU are among the companies that have used Total Touch to measure media audiences for key events.

Knowledge Networks, now part of the GfK Group, is passionate about research in marketing, media, health and social policy – collaborating closely with client teams throughout the research process, while applying rigor in everything we do. We specialize in innovative online research that consistently gives leaders in business, government, and academia the confidence to make important decisions. KN delivers affordable, statistically valid online research through KnowledgePanel® and leverages a variety of other assets, such as world-class advanced analytics, an industry-leading physician panel, an innovative platform for measuring online ad effectiveness, and a research-ready behavioral database of frequent supermarket and drug store shoppers.