Mobile Video on LTE Surpasses 3G

Wednesday, September 3rd, 2014
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Citrix Data Shows New Trends in Mobile Subscriber Data Usage

  • Latest Citrix Mobile Analytics Report Reveals Subscriber Preferences and the Impact of Video on Mobile Networks

SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Citrix today released the Citrix Mobile Analytics Report for the second half of 2014. The Mobile Analytics Report provides insight into subscriber behavior and related factors that determine quality of experience (QoE) for mobile data services. Key findings from the report include:

Mobile Video on LTE Surpasses 3G

The latest report finds that mobile subscribers on LTE networks are 1.5 times more likely to watch video than subscribers on 3G networks. Those LTE-surfing subscribers are also viewing longer ̶ 76 percent of Netflix viewers watch for more than five minutes when viewing over LTE but only 65 percent do so when watching over 3G – and watching higher resolution content.

Subscribers Get Social with Mobile

Social networking is the most popular mobile application category, with 40 percent of mobile subscribers engaging daily. According to the report, 47 percent of social networking data can be attributed to video and 40 percent to images. Taking a regional view, North American and the Middle Eastern subscribers have the highest video consumption on social networks with video data volume constituting 59 percent and 62 percent of total volume, respectively. Meanwhile, video consumption accounts for 39 percent of European mobile social networking data usage, with APAC following closely behind at 35 percent.

You’ve Been Served: Mobile Ads

On a given day, half of mobile data subscribers are served ads over the mobile network and the mix of ad types is changing rapidly. The latest report finds that there has been a 20 percent increase in mobile video ads since the beginning of 2014, as brands are increasingly using this medium to make their pitch rather than with traditional banner ads. Last year, Citrix found that one video ad was served for every 20 banner ads served over mobile. This year, the ratio has increased to one video ad for every 16 banner ads served.

“Providing network operators with insight into the types and volumes of content mobile subscribers are consuming helps them to identify trends in subscriber behavior and to adjust their networks accordingly,” said Mark Davis, senior director of product marketing, Service Provider Platforms at Citrix. “The mobile data experience continues to be a key contributor to subscriber satisfaction or lack thereof. Knowledge about how the network is being used combined with the tools to enhance the mobile data experience are fundamental to establishing a differentiated data service.”

Methodology

The findings in the Citrix Mobile Analytics Report are generated from the ByteMobile mobile data traffic reporting solution. The Mobile Analytics Report anonymously sources data traffic statistics from the 3G and 4G networks of the Citrix global tier-one customer base.