COP3 - Research - Ofcom

Ofcom

'More people are watching TV and video on the internet. Over a quarter (27%) of internet users regularly(-3-) watch TV or films online, compared to one in ten in 2007. This rises to 39% of 16-24 year olds, up from 21% in 2007.'


'The use of social media has tripled since 2007, when Ofcom first asked people about their social media habits. Nearly three quarters (72%) of internet users aged 16 and above say they have a social media profile, compared to 22% in 2007. 

Some 81% of social media users log into these websites or apps - including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram or Tumblr - at least once a day, up from 30% in 2007. Social media has seen the biggest growth among 35-44 year olds, with 80% of internet users in this age group now on social media, up from just 12% in 2007.

 2014 saw a dramatic surge in older people using social media, with nearly half (49%) of 55-64 year olds who go online having a social media profile, up from one third (33%) in 2013.

https://www.ofcom.org.uk/about-ofcom/latest/media/media-releases/2015/time-spent-online-doubles-in-a-decade


'More than half of internet users (56%) say they are aware of personalised advertising while around a quarter (27%) are not and 17% are unsure. Awareness is lower for internet users aged 65-74 (40%) and 75+ (28%), and among those in C2 (49%) and DE (48%) households.'

While the number of adults who have a social media profile (76% of all internet users) did not increase overall between 2015 and 2016, people are using a wider range of social media services. 

Since 2015, social media users are more likely to say they have a profile on six sites or apps: WhatsApp (45% vs. 28%), Instagram (31% vs. 22%), YouTube (30% vs. 22%), Snapchat (23% vs. 12%), Google+ (16% vs. 11%) and Pinterest (12% vs. 7%). Facebook is still the dominant social media provider, but fewer social media users now only have a Facebook account (43% in 2015 to 32% in 2016).

https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0020/102755/adults-media-use-attitudes-2017.pdf


Most people say they are exposed to opinions and views different to their own on social media Sharing with friends and family is an important route to discovering new information and content. More than six in ten users of video-sharing sites say that friends or family members tell them about content or forward it to them (62%). Just under half (49%) of viewers of ondemand content say they choose content based on recommendations by friends or family. A number of participants in the qualitative research also talked about social media as an important way of sharing information among friends, family or their local community. 

Social media also exposes people to different opinions and viewpoints, with the quantitative study finding that 85% of social media users saying that they sometimes, or often, see views they disagree with. However, not everyone is happy to post or share information. More than four in ten (44%) social media users agree that they are put off from posting content because of the potential for abusive comments or responses. 

Some of the older participants in the qualitative research are concerned about the impact of sharing content on their reputation among friends and family, and some of the younger people about the impact on future job prospects. But deciding what to share is not always a considered process: three in ten (30%) Adults’ Media Use and Attitudes – Report 2017 4 who share articles on Twitter or Facebook agree that they often do this without fully reading the content first.

'Although Facebook is still the dominant social media provider, fewer social media users now only have a Facebook account Ninety-five per cent of social media site users have a profile/ account on Facebook, unchanged since 2015, meaning that it remains the most popular social media site. Compared to 2015 there has been growth in use of WhatsApp (45% vs. 28%), Instagram (31% vs. 22%), YouTube (30% vs. 22%), Snapchat (23% vs. 12%), Google+ (16% vs. 11%) and Pinterest (12% vs. 7%). As such, the incidence of only having a profile or account on Facebook stands at one in three (32%), down from 43% in 2015'

https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0020/102755/adults-media-use-attitudes-2017.pdf