A new Deloitte poll indicates an increasing number of mobile consumers are willing to spend greater amounts of money for faster Internet connection speeds.
The “Global Mobile Consumer Survey” also shows that consumers are using 4G and Wi-Fi interchangeably at home, at work and while on-the-go, Deloitte said Wednesday.
“What drives mobility and enables everything in the ecosystem is ultimately the wireless network,” said Craig Wigginton, vice chairman and U.S. telecommunications sector leader at Deloitte LLP.
“As consumers become more comfortable moving between types of networks, we anticipate a ‘peaceful co-existence’ between Wi-Fi and 4G to support all types of activities, be it for work, play or new types of social interactions.”
Smartphone users looking to buy a new handset see price as a non-issue as opposed to non-smartphone owners, who consider the cost of the device as the most important factor to their decision-making.
App downloads decreased 13 percent in 2013 compared to 2012, according to the survey that cited tablets as heading the decline in sales, a trend Wigginton said is viewed as “good news.”
“We believe that the overall declines indicated in this year’s survey may be due to increasing sophistication among consumers,” he said.
“It is likely that they have already obtained the core apps they prefer for work and play, with those choices persisting over time as they upgrade and change their devices,” he added.
Forty-five percent of respondents say their organizations have bring your own device policies, with two-thirds noting that no technical or support issues were encountered.
The poll says near-field communication continues to be a niche field but is developing into a technology with a solid following, noting a sharp increase in usage in the past 12 months.
Wigginton also highlighted the tablet’s contribution to the larger mobile ecosystem, noting that tablet use is increasing smartphone use.
More consumers bought a tablet in 2013, with most purchases made by those in the aged 25-34 and 55-and-older demographic.
