Table of Contents
Overview
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- What you need to know
- Definition
Executive Summary
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- The issues
- Brand loyalty is low overall
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- Figure 1: “I always buy the same brand of phone”, by phone brand owned, January 2018
- Few customers are paying for their smartphones up front
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- Figure 2: Paid for smartphone entirely up front, January 2018
- The opportunities
- Opportunity to target smartphones based on demographics
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- Figure 3: Type of mobile phone device owned, by age, January 2018
- Men are more likely than women to be using the newest smartphone technologies
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- Figure 4: Tasks done with smartphone, by gender, January 2018
- Three to four years is the sweet spot for upgrading a smartphone
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- Figure 5: Demand for smartphone improvements (net), by age of device, January 2018
- What it means
The Market – What You Need to Know
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- Younger generations will drive up the usage of smartphones
- Targeting smartphones to older demographics
- Immigration should have an impact on smartphone market
- Canadians are using multiple devices to connect online
- Monetary concerns can lead to cautious spending
Market Size
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- Mobile phone subscriptions are growing in Canada
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- Figure 6: Mobile phone subscriptions in Canada, 2012-16
- Figure 7: Monthly mobile data usage among subscribers with data plans, 2014-16
Market Factors
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- Younger generations will drive up the usage of smartphones
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- Figure 8: Share of Canadian population (2016) and smartphone penetration, by age, January 2018
- Targeting smartphones to older demographics
- Immigration will have an impact on smartphone market
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- Figure 9: Forecast Chinese Canadian population, 2011 and 2036
- Canadians are using multiple devices to connect online
- Monetary concerns can lead to cautious spending habits
Key Players – What You Need to Know
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- Apple, Samsung and other manufacturers battle with evolving devices
- Smartphone ownership is nearing ubiquity
- Smartphones are struggling to differentiate
- Third-party companies capitalising on omnipresence of smartphones
- The emergence of 5G
What’s Working?
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- Apple, Samsung and other manufacturers battle with evolving devices
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- Figure 10: iPhone – Music – Apple, May 2017
- Figure 11: iPhone – Security – Apple, May 2017
- Smartphone ownership is nearing ubiquity
Challenges
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- Smartphones are struggling to differentiate
What’s Next?
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- Third-party companies capitalising on the ubiquity of smartphones
- The emergence of 5G
The Consumer – What You Need to Know
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- Differences between iPhone and Android users
- Brand loyalty
- Gender differences
- Spending behaviour on mobile phones
- Smartphone owners want improved devices
Differences between iPhone and Android Users
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- About a third of Canadians own an iPhone
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- Figure 12: Type of mobile phone device owned, January 2018
- iPhone ownership skews to younger adults
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- Figure 13: Type of mobile phone device owned, by age, January 2018
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- Figure 14: Snapchat and Instagram daily visitation, by age, January 2018
- Figure 15: Snapchat and Instagram daily visitation, iPhone vs Android device, January 2018
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- Figure 16: iPhone X – Animoji Yourself – Apple, November 2017
- Additional demographic differences in smartphone ownership
Brand Loyalty
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- iPhone owners are more loyal than Android owners
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- Figure 17: “I always buy the same brand of phone”, by phone brand owned, January 2018
- What draws 25-44-year-olds away from iPhones and towards Android?
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- Figure 18: Type of Android device owned, 18-24s vs 25-44s, January 2018
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- Figure 19: “I always buy the same brand of phone”, iPhone owners, by age, January 2018
- Most owners are happy with their current smartphone
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- Figure 20: “I am happy with my current smartphone”, by age, January 2018
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- Figure 21: “I am happy with my current smartphone”, by age of smartphone, January 2018
Gender Differences
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- Men more likely to be Android users
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- Figure 22: Phone ownership, by gender, January 2018
- Women use their phones for pictures and sharing
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- Figure 23: Currently do or interested in photos on smartphone, by gender, January 2018
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- Figure 24: Visit Instagram daily, by gender, January 2018
- Men are using secondary functions on smartphones
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- Figure 25: Tasks done with smartphone, by gender, January 2018
Spending Behaviour on Mobile Phones
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- Using phone purchases to understand spending habits
- Income has limited effect on buying phones up front
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- Figure 26: Paid for smartphone entirely up front, January 2018
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- Figure 27: Paid for smartphone entirely up front, by household income, January 2018
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- Figure 28: Paid for smartphone entirely up front, by gender, January 2018
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- Figure 29: Paid for smartphone entirely up front, Chinese Canadians vs overall population, January 2018
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- Figure 30: Paid for smartphone entirely up front, by region, January 2018
Smartphone Owners Want Improved Devices
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- The majority of owners want at least part of their phone improved
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- Figure 31: Demand for phone improvements, January 2018
- 18-34-year-olds are particularly likely to want an improved smartphone
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- Figure 32: Want a better camera, storage space or screen size (net), by age, January 2018
- Age of phone influences demand for phone improvements
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- Figure 33: Demand for smartphone improvements (net), by age of device, January 2018
Appendix – Data Sources and Abbreviations
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- Data sources
- Consumer survey data
- Consumer qualitative research
- Abbreviations and terms
- Abbreviations
- Terms
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