Entertainment (e.g. Netflix) accounts for 60% of US web traffic at peak times

"Within fixed networks in the United States, Real-Time Entertainment applications are the primary drivers of network capacity requirements, accounting for 60% of peak downstream traffic, up from 50% in 2010. Rate-adaptive video represents the majority of video bandwidth, with Netflix alone representing 32.7% of peak downstream traffic, a relative increase of more than 10% since spring.
We have entered the “Post-PC Era”, as the majority of Real-Time Entertainment traffic (55%, by volume) is destined for game consoles, set-top boxes, smart TVs, and mobile devices being used in the home, with only 45% actually going to desktop and laptop computers over North American fixed networks.
Video in mobile networks continues to gain momentum.  In North America, Real-Time Entertainment is now 32.6% of peak downstream traffic, while in Asia Pacific it is 41.8%.  The largest contributor is YouTube, and other applications like peercasting PPStream and Netflix are making inroads.
Mobile Marketplace traffic accounts for 9.4% of peak downstream usage in APAC and 5.8% in North America, led in both cases by Apple and Google. Applications like Skype and WhatsApp Messenger, that replace the traditional revenue sources of voice and texting, are being installed by growing numbers of subscribers.
In North America on fixed networks, mean usage remained generally flat at the high end (22.7 GB from 23.0 GB reported in May) and median usage dropped to 5.8 GB from 7.0 GB. This shows that while subscribers aren’t using more traffic overall the usage gap between heavy and light users is broadening and that more data is being used during the small peak period window.  In Asia-Pacific fixed networks, median monthly usage is 17.7 GB, which is the largest we have observed."

Source:  Data from Sandvine, reported in a press release, 26th October 2011

Samsung is the world's largest smartphone manufacturer

"Samsung has overtaken Apple in worldwide smartphone shipments after Apple suffered its lowest levels of shipments in two years, according to research firm Strategy Analytics.
Global smartphone shipments grew 44% year-on-year to reach a record 117 million units in the third quarter of 2011, said the survey. Samsung shipped 28 million smartphones, grabbing 24% market share and overtaking Apple.
[...]
Apple's share of the tablet market has also shrunk by 29% to 67%, as Google's mobile operating system (OS) Android took a chunk out of the company's global sales during the last quarter this year.
Nokia's market share fell from 33% in the same period in 2010 to 14% in 2011. Strategy Analytics believes Nokia's new Lumia smartphone range, running Microsoft's Windows Phone 7.5 OS, could drive recovery for Nokia's marketshare.
Global handset shipments grew 14% in the third quarter of 2011 to reach 390 million units."
Source:  Computer Weekly, 31st October 2011

7 of the 10 most followed people on Twitter are women

"# Name (Screen Name) Followers
1. Lady Gaga (ladygaga) 15,117,972
2. Justin Bieber (justinbieber) 13,868,314
3. Katy Perry (katyperry) 11,511,972
4. Barack Obama (BarackObama) 10,872,247
5. Kim Kardashian (KimKardashian) 10,735,244
6. Britney Spears (britneyspears) 10,662,045
7. Shakira (shakira) 9,802,132
8. Rihanna (rihanna) 9,055,660
9. taylorswift13 (taylorswift13) 8,759,295
10. ashton kutcher (aplusk) 8,028,802"
Source:  Retrieved from Twitaholic, 31st October 2011

Differences between users of different mobile operating systems

"Android users are more likely than users of other platforms to visit education sites.
Windows Phone users are more likely to visit email and communications sites, compared to users of other platforms.
Feature phone users are far and away the most likely to visit social-network and community sites on their handsets, with Android users being the least likely.
BlackBerry (RIM) users are more likely than anyone else to visit computer and sports sites.
Android users are the most likely to view “Music, video and media” sites whereas iPhone users are least likely to view sites in that category.
Across all platforms, the top 2 categories (other than “Unclassified”) are: “Social networks & community” and “News & information”."
Source:  Taken from Opera's State of the Mobile Web report, 27th October 2011
Note - based on behaviour of people who use the Opera browser on their phone

49% of people exposed to Doritos ads on XBox LIVE subsequently went out and bought Doritos

"Doritos’ ‘Unlock Xbox’ competition invited fans to capture the essence of the snack in the form of a Doritos Xbox LIVE Arcade game with the opportunity to win a $50,000 gaming consultant project. The campaign put the votes of Xbox LIVE users at the heart of the contest, driving far-reaching engagement and ensuring huge interest in the final Doritos games. The field was narrowed to eight by an expert panel of judges, and then pared down to three by the votes of Xbox LIVE visitors. After a pitch at Microsoft headquarters, the two finalists (Doritos Crash Course and Harm’s Way – by Doritos) were launched for free download on Xbox LIVE, with gamers voting on their favourite.
Key results:
Throughout the contest, Unlock Xbox delivered exceptional engagement levels
The winning game became the fastest downloaded Xbox LIVE Arcade game in history with over 1 million downloads in the first two weeks
Over 50% of those exposed to the Doritos ads on Xbox LIVE clicked to learn more about the contest
40% voted for their favourite Doritos Xbox LIVE Arcade game
72% took action after seeing Doritos advertising on Xbox LIVE
24% told friends about the Doritos Xbox competition
49% went out and bought Doritos"

Source:  Case study from Microsoft Advertising (UK), 4th July 2011

Digital platforms account for nearly 30% of all UK radio listening

"Listening to radio via a digital platform in terms of weekly reach* has increased by 12% year on year,
with 22.8 million people now tuning in to radio via a digitally enabled receiver (DAB, DTV, internet) each
week (up from 20.4 million in Q3, 2010).
Digital listening  hours for Q3, 2011  reached 304 million hours,  up 16%, from 262 million hours in Q3,
2010.   DAB radio maintains its position as the most popular device when it comes to listening to digital
radio, accounting for 63.9% of all digital hours, however listening via DTV (digital television) and internet
have both continued to rise year on year (hours up by 8% and 32%  respectively), albeit from a smaller
base.
- DAB hours are 194 million (162m in Q3, 2010 – up 20%)
- DTV hours are 50 million (47m in Q3, 2010 – up 8%)
- Internet hours are 40 million (30m in Q3, 2010 – up 32%)
The  share of radio listening via a digital platform now stands at 28.2%  of all radio listening, increasing
from 24.8% in  Q3, 2010 and up quarter on quarter by 5% (c.f. 26.9% in Q2, 2011).   DAB listening
increased its share from  15.3% in Q3, 2010 to  18% in Q3, 2011, while the share of  DTV listening
increased from 4.4% in Q3, 2010 to reach 4.7% this quarter; and internet listening, which currently stands
at 3.7% for Q3, 2011, is up from 2.8% in Q3, 2010"
Source:  Data from Rajar, reported in a press release, 27th October 2011

40% of Coldplay's first 3 day UK sales for Mylo Xyloto are from downloads

"Coldplay are on course to score their fifth Official Albums Chart Number 1 this weekend, as well as notching up one of the best-selling opening weeks of any album release this year, according to today’s Official Chart Update.
‘Mylo Xyloto’, Coldplay’s fifth studio album, has kicked off the week to a flying start, racking up sales of over 122,000 in its first three days of sale.  The release is now set to become one of the fastest-selling albums of 2011, with a massive 40% of UK sales to date coming from downloads.  All eyes look set on the British rockers breaking the 200,000 sales barrier by Sunday, a feat this year only accomplished by two other Number 1 albums, Adele’s ‘21’ and Lady Gaga’s ‘Born This Way’.
A positive knock-on effect also appears to be taking shape on Coldplay’s back catalogue, with the band enjoying four additional slots in today’s Top 75; ‘Parachutes’ (49), ‘Viva La Vida or Death And All His Friends’ (51), X&Y (55) and ‘A Rush Of Blood To The Head’ (66)."
Source:  Press release from The Official Charts Company, 26th October 2011

European Mobile Benchmarks August 2011

Click to enlarge

Source:  Data from comScore for the 3 months to August 2011, reported in a press release, 26th October 2011

3G penetration by market, Q2 2011

Click to enlarge

Source:  Data from Informa & WCIS+, taken from Mary Meeker's Internet Trends presentation 2011, KPCB, October 2011

Mary Meeker's Internet Trends October 2011

KPCB Internet Trends 2011

View more presentations from Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers

Online display ad spend rose 21% in Europe in 2010

"The headline number for display in Europe is now €5.8 Billion – a 21.1% growth on last year’s figures. It’s difficult to acertain how much traditional display has really grown, as there is no break out numbers for Facebook. I think the IAB will have to do this next year – so we can a real feel for how the different channels are faring in terms of media spend. I have produced a chart of the top performing countries in the market. The UK and Germany are way out ahead, clocking in at just over 1 billion euro each. France comes in at third – closely followed by Italy."
Source:  Data from the IAB Europe, compiled by PwC, reported by ExchangeWire, 29th September 2011
Note - Data is compiled for 25 markets in Europe and relates to full year 2010

Netflix lost over 800,000 subscribers in Q3 2011

"Netflix ended the third quarter of 2011 with just 23.8 million total subscribers — 810,000 fewer subscribers that the previous quarter, the company revealed today in its latest earnings report.
So, where did those lost subscribers go? Most of the losses are attributedto the company raising subscription rates by 60 percent on its DVD-by-mail service. The low numbers are also reflective of Netflix’s unpopular decision to split its DVD-by-mail business into a separate company called Qwikster — a move that Netflix later canceled after receiving backlash from its customer base."

Source:  VentureBeat, 24th October 2011