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Nearly 2 in 5 Tablet Owners Read Newspapers and Magazines on Their Device in August
Kindle Fire Owners Most Likely to Consume News According to Comscore TabLens
RESTON, VA, October 17, 2012 – Comscore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today released a study of tablet newspaper and magazine readership based on data from its Comscore TabLens service. The study found that nearly 2 in 5 U.S. tablet owners read newspapers and/or magazines on their device in August, with 1 in 10 reading publications almost daily. Analysis of readership activities across platforms revealed that Kindle Fire users displayed the strongest propensity for reading newspapers and magazines on their device.
“Tablets are fundamentally redefining how people consume news and information, with the format more conducive to reading longer form content than PCs or smartphones,” said Mark Donovan, Comscore SVP of Mobile. “In the case of online newspapers, tablets are now driving 7 percent of total page views, an impressive figure considering the relative infancy of the tablet space. Publishers that understand how these devices are shifting consumption dynamics will be best positioned to leverage this platform to not only drive incremental engagement among current subscribers but also attract new readers.”
1 in 10 Tablet Owners Read Newspapers and Magazines Almost Daily on their Device
In the three-month average period ending August 2012, 37.1 percent of tablet owners read a newspaper on their device at least once during the month, with 11.5 percent of tablet owners reading newspapers almost every day. Kindle Fire users demonstrated the greatest tendency to read newspapers, with 39.2 percent doing so in August, slightly edging out iPad at 38.3 percent. NOOK Tablet owners boasted the greatest percentage of high-frequency newspaper readers with 13.4 percent doing so on a near daily basis.
Magazines/periodicals showed even higher readership rates than newspapers with 39.6 percent of tablet owners reading magazines on their device during the month. Kindle Fire owners once again showed the highest readership rate at 43.9 percent, followed by iPad users at 40.3 percent.
Newspaper and Magazine Readership Analysis Across Tablets*3 month avg. ending Aug. 2012 Total U.S. Tablet Owners, Age 13+Source: Comscore TabLens
% Share of Total Audience
Total Tablet
iPad
Android Tablet**
Kindle Fire
NOOK Tablet
Total Tablet Audience: 13+ yrs old
100.0%
Read newspapers
Almost every day
11.5%
12.0%
12.1%
12.8%
13.4%
At least once each week
11.0%
12.2%
10.1%
12.3%
8.3%
Once to three times throughout the month
14.6%
14.2%
14.1%
Ever in month
37.1%
38.3%
36.8%
39.2%
31.8%
Read magazines or periodicals
9.7%
9.4%
10.4%
11.3%
13.3%
13.8%
12.7%
16.0%
15.0%
16.7%
17.1%
15.5%
16.6%
39.6%
40.3%
38.5%
43.9%
39.4%
*Comscore defines a media tablet as a touchscreen tablet device with a slate form factor, a 7 inch or greater screen size and a data connection, but no voice plan. Single purpose eBook reader devices are excluded from this definition.**For this analysis, Kindle Fire and NOOK Tablet were excluded from the Android tablet total.
On-Device Readership Driven by Consumers Age 25-44Analysis into readership demographics revealed that newspaper and magazine tablet audiences closely resembled one another in gender, age and household income distribution. Across both newspapers and magazines, readers were significantly more likely to be male. Newspaper audiences were 17 percent more likely to be male compared to an average tablet owner (index of 117), while magazine audiences were 11 percent more likely to be male (index of 111).
People between the ages of 25-34 represented the highest share of readers, accounting for 27.4 percent of newspaper consumers and 28.2 percent of magazine/periodical consumers, while people age 35-44 accounted for 1 in 5 readers in both categories. More than half of readers had a household income of $75k or greater, while those in the highest income segment of $100k or greater skewed most heavily toward readership.
Demographic Analysis:Newspaper and Magazine Readership on Tablets*3 month avg. ending Aug. 2012 Total U.S. Tablet Owners, Age 13+Source: Comscore TabLens
Read newspaper
% of Audience
Composition Index of Audience**
Total Audience: 13+ yrs old
100
Gender:
Male
57.5%
117
54.6%
111
Female
42.5%
83
45.4%
89
Age:
13-17
4.0%
66
5.3%
87
18-24
98
15.3%
106
25-34
27.4%
123
28.2%
127
35-44
20.1%
103
21.1%
108
45-54
18.4%
99
17.5%
94
55-64
9.5%
90
7.4%
70
65+
6.5%
75
61
Household Income:
<$25k
7.5%
7.8%
$25k to <$50k
95
$50k to <$75k
19.8%
19.4%
$75k to <$100k
97
$100k+
39.3%
38.7%
107
*Comscore defines a media tablet as a touchscreen tablet device with a slate form factor, a 7 inch or greater screen size and a data connection, but no voice plan. Single purpose eBook reader devices are excluded from this definition.**Index = % of Audience Segment/% of Total Tablet Audience x 100; Index of 100 indicates average representation
Comscore TabLens is a monthly syndicated service providing insights into U.S. tablet ownership and usage. Based on a 3-month rolling sample of 6,000 U.S. tablet owners, TabLens provides insight into tablet audiences, including demographics, content consumption habits and device ownership, to provide the industry with the most up-to-date look at this expanding tablet market.
About ComscoreComscore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR) is a global leader in measuring the digital world and preferred source of digital business analytics. For more information, please visit www.comscore.com/companyinfo.
Contact:Carmela AquinoComscore, Inc. press@comscore.com