A Peek into Broadband Habits

A Peek into Broadband Habits

Canstar Survey Shows Internet beginning to rival TV for kids, data useage grows

Auckland 07 February 2013 – A new survey of broadband account holders shows some interesting insights including:

· A significant minority don’t understand ultra-fast broadband (UFB)

· Dissatisfaction with the price of broadband packages

· Guilt about the amount of time spent online

· The internet beginning to rival television for children

Eighteen months after the awarding of the UFB contracts a new nationwide survey looking at broadband use shows that more than 40% of kiwis don’t understand how UFB differs from their current service.

The independent Canstar Blue survey, suggests there is more work to be done to communicate the benefits of the new ultra-fast service as it rolls out across the country, says Canstar General Manager New Zealand, Derek Bonnar.

“At this point, 43% of all respondents and half of all of the women surveyed don’t understand UFB and how it will change their internet experience. Hopefully this number will reduce as more of the new network is deployed, and UFB becomes more of a reality and less of a concept.”

Data use and price satisfaction

Demand for data capacity has increased with nearly 60% of survey respondents saying they were using more data (downloading/uploading) than they did 12 months ago.

Despite the broadband market becoming more competitive with higher or unlimited data caps, cheaper prices and other incentives, many customers are unhappy with the prices they pay, says Bonnar.

“More than 60% of respondents think they pay too much for their broadband package, perhaps reflecting media articles noting New Zealand broadband deals lag behind most other developed countries.”

Online habits

With internet use on the rise, the survey also looked at how spending time online was impacting the offline lives of respondents, and in another question, whether people felt guilty about the amount of time spent online.

The majority seem able to manage the time they spend online, says Bonnar.

“But a small percentage - ten per cent - say their relationships are impacted by the amount of time spent online. Those from the Waikato, Gen Ys and men were most likely to fall into this category.

“Just over a quarter of all respondents say they often feel guilty about the amount of time they spend online, but aren’t motivated to do anything about it. Forty four per cent of Gen Ys have pangs of guilt about online use, compared to just 21% of baby boomers,” he says.

Consumer satisfaction star ratings

Challenger brand Orcon took out top honours for overall satisfaction, leading a field that included Slingshot, Vodafone New Zealand, Telstra Clear and Telecom.

The survey asked respondents who currently have a broadband account in their name and pay the bills to rate their provider across seven categories:

1. Value for money**

2. Tech support

3. Speed

4. Reliability

5. Billing

6. Download quota value for money***

7. Overall satisfaction

Bonnar says that Orcon has delivered value to customers through initiatives such as unlimited data and unmetered access to popular websites.

“This strategy has paid off. Orcon customers rewarded the company with consistently high scores in our survey. Orcon only just missed out on a full house of five star ratings, and was the only provider to receive five stars for tech support and speed.”

Children

Nearly two thirds (64%) of parents with children at home say that broadband is a necessity for their children’s homework, with parents from Auckland (73%) most likely to hold this view, compared to parents from other centres.

The internet is beginning to rival the popularity of television for children, says Bonnar.

“Auckland kids appear to be the most avid users of the internet, with nearly 50% of the region’s parents saying their kids spend more time online than watching the telly.

“Parents also recognise the importance of monitoring what their kids are doing online. Nearly 70% of parents say they are more vigilant about monitoring online use than television watched.”

About the survey

Canstar Blue commissions Your Source to regularly survey 2,500 New Zealand consumers to measure their satisfaction across a range of products and services.

The outcomes reported here are from the 1,824 people within the survey group who currently have a broadband account in their name and pay the bills

Age Groups:

Gen Y: 18-29

Gen X: 30-44

Baby Boomers: 45+

*To view the full results of the Canstar Blue survey go to: www.canstarblue.co.nz

** Value for money is about the entire experience – a combination of satisfaction with the value for money of the service, billing, speed, reliability etc.

***Download quota value for money relates solely to downloads

ENDS

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