At some time this year, US consumers will begin spending more time using their mobile devices than watching TV, a trend that is likely to continue, according to a smartphone usage forecast from research firm eMarketer.The trend of declining TV viewing and increasing smartphone usage for video watching has been continuing since 2014, when the time spent viewing TV was almost double the time spent with mobile devices.
The average US adult will spend 3 hours, 43 minutes daily (referenced as 3:43) on mobile devices in 2019, just above the 3:35 spent on TV, according to the report. U.S. consumers are expected to spend 2:55 on smartphones, a 9-minute increase from last year. In 2018, mobile time spent was 3:35, with TV time spent at 3:44.
The research adds that tablet use among US adults continues to lose ground, having peaked at 1:11 daily in 2017 and dipping to 1:08 this year. This trend will continue through 2021.
“We’ve expected that mobile would overtake TV for a while, but seeing it happen is still surprising,” said Yoram Wurmser, eMarketer principal analyst, in a prepared statement. As recently as 2014, the average U.S. adult watched nearly two hours more TV than they spent on their phones.”
People primarily spend their time on their mobile devices using apps over web browsers, with the average person spending 2:57 in apps vs. 0:26 on a mobile browser.
“Digital audio apps continue to add minutes because people are streaming more music on their phones, and podcasts have taken off in popularity in the past few years,” Wurmser said.