That’s what the results of a new survey from NPR and Edison Research confirm, as devices like Amazon’s Echo and Google’s Home continue to grow in popularity. According to data from The Smart Audio Report, one-in-six Americans now own a smart speaker (16%), up 128% since January 2017. Seven percent of Americans report acquiring at least one smart speaker between Black Friday and the end of 2017, and 4% report acquiring their first smart speaker device during the holidays.
Who dominates the category? Amazon. More than two-thirds of smart speaker owners report having an Echo, Dot, or other Alexa-based product. One quarter of smart speaker owners report having a Google Assistant product such as Google Home or Google Home Mini.
Based on The Smart Audio Report, smart speaker adoption is occurring on pace with the rapid adoption of smartphones a decade ago. Apple’s iPhone was introduced in the Summer of 2007. Three years later, Spring 2010, 14% of Americans owned a smartphone (Edison, Infinite Dial). Amazon’s Echo, the first smart speaker on the market, was introduced in November 2014. Today, three years later, 16% of Americans own a smart speaker.
What are they using the devices for? According to a survey of 800 smart speaker owners compiled during the Fall of 2017….
- 30% say the smart speaker is replacing time spent with TV
- 71% are listening to more audio since getting a smart speaker
- 66% entertain family/friends with the smart speaker
- 64% of owners who plan to buy additional smart speakers want to use them to
control smart home devices - 44% of smart speaker owners are using the voice assistant on their phones more since getting a smart speaker
- 61% are interested in getting smart speaker technology in their cars.