iGR Shows Increasing Penetration of Cellular Phone Use among Children Aged 11 and Under

Business Wire, May 7, 2007

AUSTIN, Texas -- Talk to any middle school-aged child in the U.S. today and chances are they will have a cell phone - as well as many opinions on the best service, handset, color, ringtone and/or game.

In fact, according to a major new multiclient study from iGR, approximately 50 to 70 percent of 12- to 14-year olds have their own cell phones. Penetration among those aged 15 to 17 years is even higher; the vast majority have used a cell phone for more than two years. Moreover, a significant percentage of 5 to 9 year olds now have their own cell phones.

The biggest finding in this study, compared to iGR's 2005 groundbreaking study, is that given the above usage and penetration data, the new battleground for handset OEMs and mobile operators in the teen/tween segment is now among children aged 10 and under.

So why do children want a cell phone?

The main reason was to stay in touch with friends; the second reason was to stay in touch with parents. The 'cool' factor and peer pressure also ranked highly. For example, older children tended to shy away from handset designs they perceived as "baby-ish" or geared more toward younger children.

"This study shows that although there are still significant opportunities with the tween and teen segments, the target age groups are getting younger and younger," says Iain Gillott, founder and president of iGR. "And while the children might have opinions about what they want and how they will use a cell phone, their parents still make the purchase decision and - more importantly - pay for the service and device."

The study also revealed particular concerns for the cellular handset OEMs. For example, many parents in the study did not know which brand they would buy for their child, even though they knew which handset brand they used themselves. Handset OEMs need to leverage the parents' at brand familiarity into same-brand handset sales to the teen/tween. The demand for parental controls and location-based services is high, as well.

The study also looked at various parent demographics such as age and race, and found significant differences in the way parents of different ethnic background view the teen/tween cellular market.

iGR's Tween Teen Market Opportunity Study, 2007 was conducted in March and April 2007. It comprised an extensive survey of tween and teen parents in the U.S., together with interviews of over 1,000 children aged 5 to 17 years.

The study identified the current barriers preventing the adoption and use of wireless services by tweens and teens, the potential of the tween-teen market for services, revenues and devices, specific device and service requirements for tweens and teens, distribution channels and brands for tween-teen devices and services, and critical success factors for the tween-teen sub-segments of the wireless market.

About iGR

iGR is a market strategy consultancy that conducts research on major wireless and mobile technology and business issues. www.iGR-Inc.com