Consumers increasingly depend on technology and say it has positively impacted their lives

TEMPE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Consumers worldwide increasingly depend on internet-connected devices, with 80 percent reporting digital technology has made a positive impact on their lives. According to the new “State of Digital Lifestyles” report from Limelight Networks (Nasdaq: LLNW), a global leader in digital content delivery, mobile phones have become such an integral part of daily life that nearly half of consumers surveyed say they could not go a single day without them.

Respondents in ten countries were asked how they interact with digital media and the impact of technology on their lives. When asked how long people could part with their favorite digital devices, 48 percent of global consumers noted they would not be able to stop using their mobile phones for even one day. Dependence on phones was highest in Malaysia, where 69 percent of consumers noted they could not give up these devices. Laptop and desktop computers were the second most integral technology, with 33 percent of global respondents reporting they can’t go a day without theirs.

Consumers have yet to widely embrace digital assistants such as Amazon Echo and Google Home. Globally, only 19 percent currently own one of the devices, led by the U.S. at 35 percent, with Japan having the lowest adoption at seven percent. The main hurdle to adoption is that only 35 percent of consumers fully trust digital assistants to provide general information such as weather, news and research. Less than one-third (29 percent) fully trust digital assistants for online shopping, and just 22 percent trust them for home automation.

Additional insights from the report include:

• Security is a top concern when using internet-connected devices. Nearly half (45 percent) of global consumers are concerned about the privacy of data collected by digital assistants, and 42 percent worry about security and potential hacking into the devices.
• Entertainment has gone digital, with music leading the way. Globally, 61 percent of consumers prefer to stream movies and television shows online rather than downloading or using DVDs, and 53 percent prefer to stream music. Notably, only eight percent of global consumers still purchase audio CDs. Music is the most popular type of online content accessed by global consumers, followed by movies and TV shows, and apps.
• Consumers expect high-quality online experiences. Most consumers (88 percent) are frustrated by the process of accessing and using digital content, with over one-third (37 percent) noting rebuffering or stopped playback as their primary frustration.

“Digital interactions play an increasingly important role in society today, making lives more connected and productive. As people become more reliant on these connected devices for information, entertainment, and to simplify everyday tasks, expectations for performance are rising,” said Michael Milligan, Senior Director at Limelight Networks. “At Limelight, we continue to develop innovative solutions that help content distributors and manufacturers address consumer demands for high-quality, responsive, and secure online experiences.”

The State of Digital Lifestyles report is based on responses from 5,000 consumers in France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and the United States age 18 and older who had downloaded software or streamed online video or music during the last month. The full report is available here.

About Limelight
Limelight Networks Inc., (NASDAQ: LLNW), a global leader in digital content delivery, empowers customers to better engage online audiences by enabling them to securely manage and globally deliver digital content, on any device. The company’s Limelight Orchestrate Platform includes a global infrastructure with a fully-integrated suite of capabilities and services to help you address all your content delivery needs. The Orchestrate Platform solves your most important content delivery challenges so you can deliver the next great digital experience anywhere. For more information, visit www.limelight.com , follow us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.

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Source: Limelight Networks Inc.