Consumers’ attention across the globe has turned from outward spaces to the internal spaces of the home, as we all start operating daily lives within four walls and within the confines of technology – such as our work, communication with others, etc. But what we are looking for has also changed.
While social-networking sites are reporting massive spikes in use due to social isolation, the vast majority of that growth is less from users scrolling through feeds. Instead, people are leveraging messaging services such as Messenger and WhatsApp. It’s clear that direct communication with friends and family members is essential and the need for access to digital services like email and internet is crucial nowadays with Zoom and BOTIM trending for voice and video calling. Etisalat offers free internet voice and video calling facility to both existing and new customers to stay in touch with their loved ones during these challenging times. Streaming video overall is also up (20%), demonstrating our need for entertainment at this time.
“What we found, however, is that more people are turning to mobile games for entertainment than ever before. Some 85% of consumers are playing mobile games for relief, according to our Coronavirus Impact Survey to the EMEA and LATAM regions, conducted in late March. Respondents ranged from 14 to 74, but most in EMEA were in the 25-54 age group,” said Volkan Biçer, General Manager EMEA & LATAM, AdColony.
“Mobile games have always been popular in Middle East and we represent 23% of the total global games market – and games overall have grown faster year over year than the global average.”
