Focus on Spare Time in Post-Corona Market
Potential for spare time while commuting between home and office, or traveling
June 25, 2021
Summary
◆One of the major economic and social changes brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic is the acceleration of digitalization. Furthermore, in recent years, smartphones have become increasingly popular, and the number of people who use bits of spare time, such as downtime between tasks to connect to the Internet both at home and when they are out is increasing. In fact, marketing strategies that are suitable for mobile devices, called snackable content aimed at spare time and downtime, have recently been attracting attention in the US.
◆The use of smartphones during spare time is increasing (1) during meals such as lunch, commuting, commuting to school, etc., and use time becomes longer when traveling and watching TV, (2) in recent years, use time is longer during travel and dinner, and (3) in general, use time is longer for men.
◆In recent years, the percentage of people who prefer indoor activities, such as playing games and movies at home and elsewhere using digital devices, has been consistently increasing. According to the Digital Content Association of Japan, the market size of the content industry (including television and theatres) in 2019 was approximately ¥12.8 trillion, of which approximately ¥9.2 trillion, or more than 70%, is accounted for by digital content such as electronic books, music downloads, videos, and apps. Furthermore, the amount of expenditure on digital content by households increased sharply during the Coronavirus crisis. The digital content market is expected to expand further in the future.
◆As a result of rapid progress in digitalization due to the Coronavirus crisis, connection to the internet as an outdoor behavior utilizing spare time and downtime is expected to increase in the post-corona era as well. Like snackable content in the US,opportunities to further utilize spare time are expected to increase in the future, in which users can move frequently between different content in a short time with just one smartphone operation, without being tied to a particular place or time.
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