Study: 37 million social media users created in the last quarter

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More than two-thirds of the world's population now use the Internet, with social media once more proving that it is not going anywhere. Today's online world currently boasts 5.07 unique social media identities, with 37 million users created in the last quarter.

5.56 billion users have been identified as mobile phone users, with an overall increase in users recorded across the digital world.

These statistics follow the latest quarterly report from We Are Social and Meltwater, which analysed social media and digital trends in Q1 2024 of digital users aged 16-64.

Don't miss: Why TikTok is Gen Z’s cultural playground in Southeast Asia

In Southeast Asia, 73.7% of the region's total population are on the Internet. The region also sees more social media users active than the global average, particularly in the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.

On average, the region sees a good balance between male and female Internet users, with numbers skewing slightly more towards males (52%) than females (48%).

Globally, the average time spent on social media for users is two hours and 20 minutes, a slight dip from the previous quarter at two hours and 24 minutes. In Southeast Asia however, the aforementioned countries boast higher online engagement times, with an average of three hours and 30 minutes recorded for users in the Philippines.

It is also worth highlighting that a meaningful proportion of people’s daily media consumption happens concurrently, which sees users toggle multiple apps at once, contributing to overall screen time. This has been noted to been an overall decrease in an average internet user's screen time.

Which platforms should marketers take note of?

Video content is particularly popular in the region, where Southeast Asia has been highlighted as having the world's most "active" gamers. The Philippines (96.5%), Indonesia (95.3%), and Vietnam (94.7%) hold the top three top spots in the latest rankings for percentage of internet users aged 16-64, playing video games on any device.

Another popular video format is TV and OTT. 97.4% of internet users in the Philippines watch TV via streaming services, the second highest globally. Similarly, the nation tops watching music videos online (72.9%) and vlogs (49.9%).

Indonesia, Hong Kong, and Vietnam also rank higher than the global average (92.7%), with Singapore recording slightly lower numbers (90.1%).

Thailand spends the second most time globally on YouTube, at a record statistic of 42 hours and 49 minutes spent each month on the platform, followed by Indonesia, the Philippines, and Singapore, who also come in above the global average (27 hours 43 minutes).

TikTok has proved to be particularly popular throughout the region, with countries in Southeast Asia once again prevailing over the global average (31 hours 47 minutes). In Southeast Asia Indonesia takes the top spot (38 hours 24 minutes), followed by Malaysia (38 hours 7 minutes), Thailand (37 hours 18 minutes), the Philippines (36 hours 49 minutes), Vietnam (36 hours 16 minutes), and Singapore (32 hours 59 minutes).

What are Gen Z up to? The rising popularity of non-video

With many brands catering their marketing and advertising messages to Gen Z, paying attention to non-video platforms may become an important toolkit for marketers.

We Are Social's report found a notable correlation between TikTok's users and that of search engine platforms, noting a particular skew towards Gen Z users. Young women in particular are both the biggest users of TikTok and search engines, who use both social search and traditional search engine sites such as Google.

Another surprising statistic also highlights that Gen Z users use email frequently, with more than 75% of users using email each month. Gen Z are also more likely to visit a brand's website than its social networking pages (44%), similar to Gen X (44.8%).

Podcasts are also an increasingly popular format consumed by the region's digital users, and are highly popular in Indonesia, where 40.2% of Indonesians online digitally consume podcasts weekly. The Philippines, Vietnam, Singapore, and Hong Kong fall slightly below the global average (21%), yet nevertheless boast a high engagement with podcasts.

Join us on 12 June 2024 for an exciting experience as Content360 makes its debut in Malaysia! Brace yourself to join the crème de la crème of the content marketing industry hailing from across the region. Immerse yourself in a dynamic atmosphere, and uncover the latest trends with thought leaders and solution providers from the realm of content.

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