The rapid up-take of mobile devices has spurred the growth of Internet usage in the Philippines, with an increasing number of Filipinos accessing the Internet at home via mobile devices, according to the latest Nielsen Pinoy Netizen report, released recently.
The Nielsen Pinoy Netizen report provides a 360-degree view of the activities of Filipino netizens in urban Philippines, as well as key demographic profiles, psychographic information, consumption of other media and product consumption.
The report showed Internet penetration nearly doubled in the past four years, up from 27 percent in 2010 to 52 percent in 2014.
When connecting to the Internet, Filipinos preferred to use a mobile device than a desktop computer. Notably, the use of desktop computers to access the Internet showed a significant decline from 63 percent in the last quarter of 2012 to 35 percent in the first quarter of 2014.
The use of mobile phones to access the Internet is now equal to desktops (35 percent). While desktop usage was on the decrease, the use of laptops to access the Internet remained stable at 41 percent and is now the most commonly used device to access the Internet.
“Filipinos are demanding fast, convenient and on-the-go access to the Internet,” observed Nielsen Philippines managing director Stuart Jamieson. “Mobile devices are effectively addressing this demand, and as a result, web users are migrating away from traditional PCs to connected devices as a means of accessing information online.”
Growing proportionately with increasing use of mobile devices to access the Internet is the frequency with which netizens go online and the amount of time they spend online. Among home Internet users, almost six in 10 (58 percent) are online daily in the first quarter of 2014, against 23 percent in the fourth quarter of 2013. While connected, 33 percent say that they spend more than two hours a day online, compared to the previous quarter’s proportions of 28 percent on weekdays and 26 percent on weekends.
“As mobile penetration rises and getting online becomes easier than ever, consumers are staying online for increasing lengths of time,” noted Jamieson. “As such, connected devices are providing exciting opportunities for brands to connect with consumers, and in the coming years organizations need to understand and leverage this behavioral shift to help strengthen their engagement with their customers.”