Study: Vlogs and video games reign in Philippines

Internet users in the Philippines are avid consumers of vlogs and video games, ranking first for both. Currently, there is 95.8% of internet users in the Philippines who play video games on any device, making it the first country to do so, ahead of the global benchmark of 81.9%. They spend an average of one hour and 29 minutes on a game console each day compared to the global average of one hour and 14 minutes, according to latest report found by global firm in social and media intelligence, Meltwater, and socially-led creative agency, We Are Social. 

Furthermore, 55.6% of internet users in the Philippines, aged 16 to 64, watch vlogs each week and are the largest consumer of such content, compared to other countries. The Philippines is ranked first globally in terms of vlog consumption, significantly ahead of Indonesia (33.3% and placed second) and the global benchmark of 25.5%.

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Internet users in the Philippines are not only drawn to playing video games and watching vlogs, they are watch a lot of TV content and listen to music streaming services. Around 97.9% watch TV content via streaming services such as Netflix each month compared to the global benchmark of 90.9% while 48.2% listen to music streaming services each week, ahead of the global benchmark of 39.1%.

On a separate note, 23.4% of Filipino internet users own some form of cryptocurrency compared to the global benchmark of 11.9%, making them the third highest country to do so according to the report. 

In terms of spending time on social media, the Philippines is ranked fourth (three hours 43 minutes), significantly higher than the global average of two hours and 31 minutes.

The growing importance of social media is reflected in global advertising spend, with investment in social media ads more than doubling since the outbreak of COVID-19,  to reach an estimated US$226 billion in 2022.

Currently, there are 5.16 billion internet users in the world today, and 4.76 billion social media users. Average daily mobile time has increased by seven minutes per day over the past year, and the typical Android user now spends more than five hours per day using their smartphone, however: Not surprisingly, computers still account for more than half of the time that people in North America and Europe spend using the internet.

However, ownership of cryptocurrencies is in decline: the share of internet users who own at least one form of digital currency fell by three percent between July and October. While social media platform TikTok tops the global list of social media platforms when it comes to time spent per user on Android devices, followed by YouTube and Facebook.

Alexandra Saab Bjertnæs, chief strategy officer at Meltwater shared that competitive brands need to stay on top of searching and identifying trends as consumers continue to spend more time on social media platforms. This becomes clear that social media will become a more important role in the customer journey as users turn to different platforms to guide their decision-making process. 

Bjertnæs added that with more than 5 billion internet users today, it’s becoming more crucial than ever that brands deliver relevant, impactful, and purposeful content to capture attention and create value across digital channels.

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