PC Home Ownership Doubles While Home Usage Stagnates Reveals Pathfinder Study Increased home PC access does not result in increased use.
NEW YORK, June 21, 1999 - Despite a nearly doubling of home PC access in the last four years, the percentage of the U.S. population who actually use PCs has stagnated according to the latest Pathfinder Study just released from Arbitron NewMedia.
According to the study, computers have become as popular as many home appliances, with home penetration nearly doubling from 29 percent in 1995 to 54 percent in 1999. However, the percentage of people with access to a home PC who actually use it has fallen off from a high of 90 percent in 1995 to 53 percent today.
High income consumers ($75K or more) report the highest incidence of PC use at home 3 percent, a decline of 10 percent since 1997.
"This decline in actual usage is part of a trend we've been tracking for the last three years," said Dr. Roberta McConochie, director of research at Arbitron NewMedia. "Apparently, many consumers deal with PCs and other technologies all day at work. By the time they get home, many of these technology-weary users prefer to wind down and spend time with their families rather than interact with office-like PCs.
"To achieve sustained growth in home computer sales, manufacturers will have to design information appliances with more obvious, easy-access user benefits in mind. Clearly, ownership of a home PC does not equal usage."
The Arbitron NewMedia Pathfinder Study also determined that the large majority of PC owners - 70 percent - subscribe to Internet services at home - a fourfold increase over the 16 percent access rate in 1995. But home web subscription does not guarantee home PC use. While nearly four out of every ten U.S. consumers currently report Web subscriptions at home (38 percent), only a portion of these people, 24 percent of U.S. consumers, report actual Web use at home. In other words, nearly all of the 29 percent of people who use their PCs at home also use the Web. But only two of every three people who could use the Web at home actually do. The lure of the Web is not sufficient to convert the one-third of home Internet subscribers who do not currently use their PCs.
The increase in home PC ownership is due, in large, to first-time PC purchasers. Since 1997, the percentage of consumers who have more than one PC at home has remained relatively unchanged; there has only been a one-percent increase. Over the last two years, the largest gains in home PC purchases has been among low-to middle-income households as well as households with children.
The Pathfinder Study is an on-going comprehensive survey of consumer media behavior and new media preferences. The study examined American purchasing and user preferences of consumer technology. Pathfinder provides valuable insights for marketers of next-generation consumer technology products by highlighting emerging trends and consumer preferences as well as being a key tool for developers of new technology products.
The Pathfinder Study is the most comprehensive survey of consumer media behavior and new media preferences. Results were based on extensive 1999 national telephone and mail surveys, which canvassed a total of 5,500 U.S. consumers, age 16-74. This survey comprises the first phase of the 1999 Pathfinder research. Additional data will become available throughout 1999 and 2000.
For information on the Arbitron NewMedia Pathfinder Study, contact Arbitron NewMedia, 9705 Patuxent Woods Drive, Columbia, MD 21046; telephone (410) 312-8429.