Overview
Connected Intelligence® provides a detailed view of the U.S. mobile market, covering devices, services, and other related areas. The service provides a full view of the consumer’s ownership of mobile devices and services. An annual subscription provides a combination of industry advice and expertise, as well as ongoing reports on the mobile landscape.
Connected Intelligence answers these questions:
- Smartphone Distribution and Pricing Analysis: Which OEMs are enjoying the lion’s share of retail? How can we better understand device ranging practices of U.S. mobile operators and retailers?
- Promotional Landscape Analysis: What kinds of promotional activities drive volume in the market?
- Device Replacement Cycles: How long do consumers hold on to their smartphones before replacing them? What are the primary factors limiting or encouraging device replacement behavior?
- Consumers’ Awareness and Purchase Consideration of Smartphone Brands: Which brands score the highest for purchase consideration?
- Unlocked Smartphone Landscape: What is the size of the unlocked smartphone market? What influences consumers’ adoption of unlocked smartphones?
- 5G Impact in Device Sales Volumes: What is consumers’ awareness level when it comes to 5G services? How interested are they in upgrading to 5G-powered smartphones?
- Device and Operator Switching Analysis: What motivates consumers to switch operators and OEM brands?
- Data Consumption: What’s happening with cellular and Wi-Fi data consumption trends on smartphones and tablets?
- Consumer Profiling: How do consumer demographics and their mobile service/device purchase behavior vary?
- Device Usage Trends: How do consumers interact daily with their smartphones and tablets? What impact do major video (Netflix, YouTube, Facebook, etc.), gaming, and other application categories have on device usage?
Recurring Reports
Device Marketplace Report (monthly):
Based on mystery shopping data, this report provides detail on all devices available in carrier and major retailer stores and online channels. This includes locked and unlocked devices merchandised in these channels. The report includes the associated carrier for each device, whether it is sold prepaid or without a contract, carrier financing details, and pricing in indirect channels such as Best Buy, Target, and Walmart. It also features three years of historical data.
Service Plan Marketplace Report (monthly):
This report delivers new insight on the plan options provided by carriers (including prepaid carriers such as Tracfone). It shows the competitive landscape for selling devices via the carriers and provides a basis for understanding why consumers may take their unlocked device to particular carriers. The report includes details on additional benefits, such as the inclusion of Netflix with T-Mobile plans.
Promotions Marketplace Report (monthly):
Providing a monthly view of carrier and national retailer promotional incentive practices, this report includes a detailed list of all device (locked and unlocked) and service-level promotional activities, captured via retail and online store visits. The promotions are categorized (service plan, accessories, device discount) and dated (start and end date) for easy navigation.
Connected Device and Carrier KPIs Report (quarterly):
This report pulls all of the key performance indicator metrics into one report. It also provides a trended view of broadband connectivity, particularly for tablet cellular connections, including a two-year forecast.
Unlocked Phone Demand Report (annual/quarterly):
With the option of quarterly or annual frequency, this report is the industry’s most comprehensive research solution. It analyzes all aspects of the unlocked smartphone market, including OEM competitiveness, retail landscape trends, demand drivers, and user behavior trends. The reporting is based on quarterly surveys of 1500+ unlocked smartphone buyers/users, coupled with Circana’s unmatched point-of-sale data.
Mobile Connectivity Report (bi-annual):
Based on consumer panel information, this report examines ownership and churn of devices by OEM, purchase location, carrier churn, and consumers’ perceptions of their carriers across various metrics. It provides a topline view of smartphone data consumption covers tablet connectivity and ownership, particularly looking at how consumers connect tablets to a cellular network (directly or via hotspots).
Consumer Profile Report (bi-annual):
This Excel-based, interactive dashboard presents consumer panel responses of various user profiles (e.g., unlocked smartphone user, carrier A customer, prepaid plan user, unlimited data plan user, demographic A user). It covers a range of research areas: ownership and churn of devices by OEM, purchase locations, carrier churn, and consumer perceptions of their carriers across various metrics.
Data Consumption Report (quarterly):
This report offers a deep dive into how much data consumers use across both Wi-Fi and cellular networks. It includes views by demographics such as age, Android vs. iOS, and carrier.
Smartphone & Tablet Usage Report (quarterly):
Built on the SmartMeter, an on-device metering solution installed on consumer devices (opt-in panel), this report provides details on apps and websites that are driving usage. Data can be filtered by demographics, carrier, and key device features, such as screen size. The report provides new insight into what drives consumer behavior, helping carriers understand the apps and website types that drive the most data consumption.
Week in Review:
This weekly overview covers the latest events in the U.S. mobile market with the Connected Intelligence take on their importance.
About the Analyst: Brad Akyuz
Brad Akyuz is an Executive Director, Industry Analyst, for Circana’s Connected Intelligence practice. Brad brings to the team nearly 20 years of mobile market research experience. He joined Circana in 2010 to build the team’s mobility area, which provides extensive research on the U.S. mobile landscape.
Prior to joining the company, Brad led the mobile device research portfolio of another market research house serving mobile companies. As an industry analyst, he frequently consults with the leading mobile operators and device makers. His expertise is sought by major print and online publications such as The Wall Street Journal, Wireless Week, USA Today, Fierce Wireless, Twice, PCMag, and TechCrunch.