Spring 2019 Smart Audio Report: Strong Smart Speaker Use Balanced By Security Concerns

Too-Smart Speakers

NPR and EDISON RESEARCH have released THE SMART AUDIO REPORT SPRING 2019 that revealed the evolution of smart speaker user behavior and perceptions. Today, 70% smart speaker owners use their devices daily despite common concerns around security and privacy -- and those fears are main reasons non-owners have not acquired a device. 

“We are starting to see more pragmatic usage of these devices,” EDISON RESEARCH SVP TOM WEBSTER said. “The longer people have these devices, the less experimentation they do with them — but the more ingrained into everyday life these devices become.”

Among the data points:
* 69% of smart speaker owners use their device daily, and households with children are even more likely to use them daily
* Smart speaker owners who have owned the device for 2+ years use an average seven (7) skills per week, compared to an average 12 skills per week among those who have owned the device for less than three (3) months 
* 66% of those who own a smart speaker with a screen say the screen has made it easier to discover new content, and the same number say having a screen makes the smart speaker “easier to use” 

“We continue to see those that have voice assistant devices love them, using them every day to get the news, listen to podcasts, live stream radio stations and more,” NPR VP/New Platform Partnerships JOEL SUCHERMAN said. “The latest data suggest we’ve moved into a maturation phase in this space, in which earning and maintaining the trust of potential smart speaker buyers, while also demonstrating new functionality, may be a key to continuing dynamic growth.” 

The Report also finds a slowing interest among non-owners in acquiring their first smart speaker. The top two (2) reasons non-users are not interested in acquiring one are:

* 63% are concerned that hackers could use a smart speaker to gain access to their home or personal information
* 55% are bothered that smart speakers are always listening

Security remains a concern around these devices among current users as well. Almost 60% of smart speaker owners worry about hackers, and more than half indicated it bothers them that their smart speaker is always listening.

THE SMART AUDIO REPORT SPRING 2019 and a full archive of past reports from NPR and Edison Research are available at www.npr.org/smartaudio. 

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