Online survey Media use by drivers FINDINGS

Online survey Media use by drivers FINDINGS

About this survey As part of R+D s Connected car project, the team are exploring how ABC might engage with future audiences in connected cars. A survey was designed to understand how drivers engage with media during their commute to work today, in 2016. The findings will be incorporated into R+D s landscape review The survey was distributed through R+D team members personal and professional social networks. It was open to respondents for one week. 93 people from around Australia responded; people who regularly drive a car to work (or place of study). R+D 2016 2

Who responded? 93 Australians who regularly drive to workplace (or place of study) using a personal vehicle. No passengers were surveyed. 41% of respondents describe their home location as inner urban, and 39% suburban. 9% live regional 3% live rural or remote. Duration of journey The most common duration of the morning journey to work was 20-30 mins long (33% of respondents) 1 respondent s occupation (as a farmer) required her to spend approx 5 hours behind the wheel each day, including operating a tractor. 18% b/w 30-40 mins 15% b/w 10-20 mins 11% b/w 40-50 mins 10% b/w 50-60 mins Time of morning 65% respondents leave their homes to travel to place of work or study between 7am-9am. 33% b/w 7:00-7:59 32% b/w 8:00-8:59 11% b/w 6:00-6:59 11% b/w 9:00-9:59 R+D 2016 3

Internet connectivity If accessing internet content in the car, 70% of respondents connect via a personal device (smartphone, etc). Only 1 respondent had a dedicated WiFi for the car. The remainder do not access internet whilst driving. Tethering devices 64% of respondents say that they have tethered their personal device to the vehicle s media system. Devices use to play media Amongst respondents, radio is the most commonly accessed device: 56% (analogue radio) and 25% (digital radio). 54% use a smartphone to play media. 23% access CD players. 21% access content via in-dash infotainment system. 10% use headphones or portable speakers. 9% other (USB drive, ipod, wearables,cassette, tablet, laptop) R+D 2016 4

Types of media accessed In a typical morning commute journey, what range of media types or formats do drivers typically access? radio (music-based) radio (talk-based) podcasts digital music service CDs audiobooks social media print media videos I use Audible to listen to audiobooks on most of my commutes. I use itunes music (playlists) but also use itunes music (subscription service) if I think of a song I want to listen to. At end of day I'm happy to listen to either audiobook or podcast something I have to concentrate on bit to help me detach from work. text-to-speech other: personal music via USB, ipod, etc. R+D 2016 5

Other use of tech during a commute journey. (Please note that maps/navigation was omitted from pre-set list) phone calls (59%) messaging (40%) social media (16%) photos checking notifications, etc. R+D 2016 6

Use of voice-command virtual assistants in cars today 39% of respondents have used Siri while driving 11% Google Now 1.5% Cortana (47% haven t used any VA) Whilst driving, VAs are used to communicate with other people - Send a text message or hands free dial - I asked Siri to call home, but it didn t work Whilst driving, VAs are used to get information - Confirming name & album of an musician that I'd heard on the wireless. - Accessing web or contact information. - Find weather. Search for business. Flight time. Whilst driving, VAs are used to control media playback - Play such and such a song. Pause. - Play podcast - Asking Siri to skip to the next track. Frustrating, because cabin noise interferes with the voice recognition. - Siri play Madonna. Whilst driving, VAs are used to assist with navigation & driving information - Directions in Google maps. - Google how long to get home. R+D 2016 7

The role of the media during a drive to work. What do people want, need or expect from the media during their commute journeys? Respondents selected their key motivations from a pre-determined list. Something to change or enhance my current mood To feel properly informed about today s news and current affairs To be updated with basic information: news headlines, traffic, weather To learn something new on a range of interesting topics To be engrossed in a story To be entertained by fun personalities Just something that runs in the background while I think about other things To feel productive, eg. catching up with work or study related industry news To pick up a new skill, such as learning a new language Other * 3 votes 26 votes 21 votes 40 votes 34 votes 4 votes 39 votes * To be stimulated by a mix of music / to enjoy music / listening to my favourite music 37 votes 21 votes 13 votes R+D 2016 8

How drivers media needs fluctuate at different times? Did respondents notice if their commuting media consumption behaviours shift or change at different times of the day, or week? If yes, why so? They type of media people engage with depends on my mood or day s activities. - Depends on my work related stress. I try and avoid true crime thrillers if I feel anxious. - ABC Classic FM for calm driving. Kyuss, Sepultura & Ryan Adams via CD for inspired driving. News is for mornings, as music is for arvos...or vice versa! - Mornings is News Radio so I'm across things before I get into work. Afternoons is commercial pop radio or my ipod. - I feel better listening to RN Drive in the evenings than I do listening to RN Breakfast in the mornings, because we have a liberal government and the headlines tend to be depressing or frustrating. They type of media people engage with depends on day of the week. - I like a music on Friday. Towards the end of the week, I listen to more upbeat music rather than news and podcasts. They type of media people engage with depends on social context. - If it is just me in the car, I will listen to current affairs or interesting topics. If there is someone else, normally there will be music on. - Changes depending on I have a small child in the car with me or not. They type of media people engage with depends on environment. - Driving on the road I prefer music as I am concentrating on the road and find voices a bit distracting. On the tractor, definitely podcasts or audiobooks - there's a natural rhythm in the machinery so any additional beat R+D 2016 would be all out of whack! 9

Preparing or preloading content ahead of journey 43% of respondents prepare their journey s media ahead of time. What kind of content? - Music playlists - Podcasts - Audiobooks - Maps People prepare ahead, so they can tailor their perfect commute media mix. - I might as well use the time that I am sitting in traffic to put some knowledge into my head, or catch up. - To give me an upbeat 20 minute commute before work. - I like to keep the car full of positive energy with my podcasts, and not have it invaded by anything negative and or advertisements. - I always have 3 or 4 podcasts ready for each daily commute. (sports, comedy and music), but no news or current affairs. - Radio content does not cover my interests. - I avoid everyone apart from Richard Glover and Christine Anu. People prepare ahead because it s safer. - Preparing ahead means I am not distracted while I drive. - So I don't have to touch my phone too often whilst driving large vehicles or farm machinery. - I need time to read the topics of each show [title and show notes] to determine what to put in the playlist. People prepare ahead to be efficient with mobile data plans. - Prefer not to download via 4G on my work phone. - I don t trust the network, and I don t like buffering delays. R+D 2016 10

When do drivers switch to something else? During a single journey, respondents reflect on why they regularly switch between different media channels, playlists, etc. Respondents switch when they actively dislike the content. - When the story or topic is too heavy - When there s an ad break or commercial - When I don t like song that s playing - When I don t like who s talking (presenter or guest) - When there s too much talking - Too much sport Respondents switch when they re feeling restless. - When there s a boring discussion - When I lose focus or concentration - When I notice repetition of content Stopping at lights is often when I change content- pick a different podcast or channel R+D 2016 11

When do drivers pay closer attention to media? Do respondents recognise any patterns in relation to when they tend to be more engaged with media content? Recognisable sounds that herald a particular segment. - I'll always turn it up I hear the ABC news theme on triple j. - The heralding of news horns before the news is pretty freakin grabby. News headlines, traffic or weather headlines. - I would listen more closely at the start of the news to hear the summary of the headlines. That will determine if I am going to engage more closely with future stories or potentially even switch channels if there is nothing interesting. When the car is static: traffic jams and red lights. - Stopping at lights is often when I change content- pick a different podcast or channel. - When the car stops - Change in traffic condition, traffic congestion. - I pull over in a park/bushland area if I have ten or fifteen minutes to spare and take some quiet time. I have my audiobooks set up so I can skip back 30 seconds at any time if I miss something. - At traffic lights I might turn down the sound if too loud Content that piques their interest. - A faster paced song, or a seldomly heard song - Interesting interviews - When they talking about something I am interested in or playing music I like R+D 2016 12

5 ways that in-media experiences could be different. We asked respondents would like to improve their media experience while driving to work. 5 clear themes emerged. 1. A tailored media mix especially for them! More personalisation please. - I d like a station that can predict my mood and interest at a given time and program a playlist accordingly. I'd like to hear local traffic reports on national programs when I first get in the car. - I d like a curated news program based on things I am interested in, similar to the way you can adjust news feeds online. - On demand audio, something like iheartradio, building a music playlist that suits my tastes with ABC news headlines in between music. The news can be voice-tracked 30mins ahead for instance. Playing my music with the news I'm after, politics, science, environment, economics, weather, no sports, news thanks, then back to my music. - Provide an up to date mix of news, weather, traffic, sport including live call of important matches finishing (usually overseas) with some music and other current affairs long form content interspersed... I find I need to rotate through current radio stations to get a mix. - Interruptions to highlight traffic snarls would be good. 2. People want to discover different content. - I would like on-demand audio books/songs similar to iview for TV. - I have quite specific esoteric interests, so I wish I could get the type of content I m really after. - Sometimes I m bored with options that I have on hand. - I wish I could discover entirely new topics in response to what I ve heard. - Maybe " If you liked xxxxxxx then you might be interested in YYyyYYYYY" as some music search engines. R+D 2016 13

5 ways that in-media experiences could be different. We asked respondents would like to improve their media experience while driving to work. 5 clear themes emerged. 3. Allow people to easily skip the bits they re not interested in. - No ads! - Just give me music to zone out with. Not relying on a (Spotify) playlist, but not having to listen to "personalities" talk. - Ssh don't talk, just play music 4. People want to use their voice to interact; to get content on demand - I wish there was voice activation, or hands-free mode so I could change tracks without looking or handling my phone. - Can ABC also do a voice command activation of info request (eg. news specifics like current weather, current traffic, local headlines, or music), similar to VOD or podcast. 5. People want to freely access content without technical barriers. - I wish that the new technology worked with in my older style car and that there was more integration across platforms. - Ideally my playlists would automatically sync and load between my home, and my car. - I wish that my device had limitless data storage and/or that my mobile data use was unmetered. - I wish I could smoothly stream content (without buffering), so I didn t have to remember to plan ahead by preloading. R+D 2016 14