Age-Based Mobile Phone Usage Survey

More than 60% of young people use their mobiles when
「Relaxing at home」「Right before they go to sleep」
Most teens－20s mail on their mobile phones
when they have nothing particular to do
When relaxing at home, games, blogs & SNS usage is around the same as calls
More discuss something with their boy/girlfriend by mobile mail than speak to them in person

 

Tokyo―May 07, 2007―The R&D Division of Hakuhodo Inc. and the Interactive Media Division of Hakuhodo DY Media Partners Inc. recently polled 1,451 male and female mobile Internet users aged 15－49 around Japan to find out how they use their mobile phones in their everyday lives. Our analysis of the results found clear differences in mobile phone usage depending on the age of the user. Key findings of this research appear below.

 

We found that mobile phone usage among young people in their teens and twenties was generally higher than that of people in their 30s and 40s in all usage situations, highlighting the difference in mobile phone penetration between the two groups.

 

When we asked them the situations where they use their mobile phones, three key patterns emerged amongst the teens(*1)－20s group: right before bed (66.2%), relaxing at home (66.0%) and while waiting (58.1%). The difference between young people and those in their 30s－40s was particularly noticeable in use during relaxed private time, such as right before bed and when relaxing at home.

 

Breaking down how they generally use their mobile phones when relaxing at home, mailing was the top function used by both the teens－20s and the 30s－40s group, far ahead of making calls. Amongst the teens－20s group blogs/SNS etc. (33.9%) and games (33.7%) were also ahead of making calls (31.2%).

 

We asked both groups what they do when they have nothing special to do. While watching TV came out on top with both age groups, a majority of the teens－20s group also mail with their mobile phones (54.6%), giving TV a run for its money (68.0%). More than half (50.6%) of teens-20s have also used a mobile search engine to look up something while watching TV, suggesting that use of mobile phones for quick access to detailed information is fairly widespread.

 

To find out whether the role of mobile phones is on the rise in everyday communications, we asked respondents what means of communication they used when they had something to discuss with their boyfriend or girlfriend. Amongst the teens－20s group, mobile emailing (58.4%) came out slightly ahead of talking in person (54.1%).

 

Access to the Internet via their mobile phone is a given for the teens-20s generation. Our research indicates just how much higher interest in and dependence on mobile phones is for this generation compared to the pervious one.

 

(*1) In this report, “teens” refers to those aged 15－19 years old (excluding junior high school students)