Facebook has regained its position as the leading social messaging app in key markets, with figures showing a significant decline in WhatsApp's usage in the US. Snapchat has also experienced substantial growth, becoming the second most used app in the US among younger demographics. Various communication preferences and features drive app usage across different countries, with regional variations in their popularity and usage patterns.

1. Messenger Wars 2
How Facebook climbed back to #1
Source: Max Morse for TechCrunch, 2013
https://www.flickr.com/photos/techcrunch/9728625374/in/photolist-

2. Since our hugely popular Messenger Wars: How
Facebook lost its lead report in 2013 (240k views)
Facebook has regained its lead,
grown in size and diversified.

3. Messenger wars in Developed Markets
A survey of 2,500 Android and iOS smartphone owners
in the US, UK, Germany, Japan and China, carried out by
mobile market research company On Device Research.

4. Top social messaging apps on smartphones
Research data from the US, UK, Germany, Japan and China shows that
Facebook Messenger is the top messaging app in US and UK
UK
China
Japan
US
Germany
84%
WeChat
75%
Line
77%
WhatsApp
60%
Facebook
Messenger
63%
Facebook
Messenger
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=2500 , US, UK, Germany, Japan and China smartphone owners

5. Facebook has regained its position
as the leader of social messaging
apps for our 5 markets
Q: Which social messaging app do you use at least once a week?
31%
24%
18%
15%
14%
12% 12%
Facebook
Messenger
WhatsApp Line WeChat QQ Twitter Skype
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=2500 , US, UK, Germany, Japan and China smartphone owners

6. Rhiannon Williams
telegraph.co.uk

7. Feb 2014
Facebook buys WhatsApp
for $19 billion
Aug 2014
Facebook removes Messenger
and creates separate app
Facebook diversifies its portfolio
Acquiring Instagram in April 2012 was only the beginning
of Facebook’s takeover of social media and messaging

8. Separating Messenger has given Facebook a
significant lead in the US
Q: Which social messaging app do you use at least once a week? (by age group)
52%
58%
47%
56% 55%
16-24 25-34 35-44 45-55 Over 55
Facebook Messenger Kik Line Skype Snapchat Twitter Viber WhatsApp WeChat
Facebook
Messenger…
all the other
apps!
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=500 ,US smartphone owners

9. WhatsApp has
declinedfrom 2nd to 4th in the US
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=500 ,US smartphone owners

10. 8% of Americans use
WhatsApp weekly.
In 2013, it was 35%.
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=500 , US smartphone owners

11. Growth of ‘alternative’ messengers
15% use Snapchat weekly and it is the 2nd
most used social messenger in the US
Q: Which social messaging app do you use at least once a week?
Since our last report in 2013,
Snapchat has grown from 30m to
200m users.
Snapchat has also grown by 12%pt
for 16-24 year olds since 2013.
16-24
32%
25-34
9%
35+
3%
Snapchat in the US
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015, Business Insider Jan 2015
N=500 , US smartphone owners

12. Snapchat
56%
Facebook
Messenger
52% Line
44%
33%
Kik
40%
WhatsApp
GlobalWebIndex reports Snapchat is also the
fastest growing social messenger app globally
Social and messaging apps growth in the last six months
Source: GlobalWebIndex Q4 2014
N=170,000, 32 markets
and Facebook
is in close 2nd!

13. Despite Facebook’s global dominance, local
apps prevail in Japan and China
Q: Which social messaging app do you use at least once a week?
US
53%
US
5%
US
2%
CH
3%
CH
4%
CH
70%
JP
10%
JP
74%
JP
2%
UK
53%
UK
3%
UK
1%
DE
36%
DE
2%
DE
1%
Facebook Messenger Line WeChat
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=2500 , US, UK, Germany, Japan and China smartphone owners

14. 52% 52%
46%
43%
63%
57%
36%
31%
46% 45%
29% 28%
12%
16%
13%
7% 9%
15%
18%
21% 21%
16% 16% 18%
Global US China Japan UK Germany
Different friends use different apps Because of different features
It used to be free, it's not anymore One for people I don't know well, other for friends/family
Why do people use different apps?
Network effect is still number one reason overall, but for
Japan & China – it’s because of different features
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=2500 , US, UK, Germany, Japan and China smartphone owners

15. China wants video messaging, calls, and stickers
Q: How important are the following features in messaging apps to you?
China values video messaging
and video calls more than any
other country.
They also care significantly
more about stickers!
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=1000 , Japan and China smartphone owners
Japan most values ease of use
and the ability to send photos.
The biggest reason why they are
not using a certain app is because
they feel ‘it’s missing a feature I
require’.

16. The US thinks it’s
vital to be able to
call through a
messenger app.
All countries value
ease of use and
the ability to send
photos.
Westerners desire greater security from apps
Q: How important are the following features in messaging apps to you?
Security is the most important feature overall
for the US, UK, and Germany– with an average
79% of respondents rating it most highly.
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=1500 , US, UK, and German smartphone owners

17. Source: cnet.com Apr 2014, Business Insider May 2013, pcworld.com Oct 2013
.

18. 2.2
2.3
2.3
2.8
3 China
UK
Germany
USA
Japan
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=2500 , US, UK, Germany, Japan and China smartphone owners
Average
number of
messaging
apps installed

19. 3.0
2.3
2.4
2.1
China
US
2013 2015
Both China and US have seen an increase in
average number of messaging apps per person
Average number of messaging apps installed
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=1000 , US and China smartphone owners

20. Contrasting communication patterns in Asia
China prefers voice call and SMS, Japan favours email
Q: How often do you use these ways of staying in touch on your phone?
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=1000, Japan and China smartphone owners
Per country charts can be found in the annex at the end of the presentation.
45%
37% 35%
47%
Social messaging apps Voice calls SMS Email
Daily
51%
61%
53%
24%
Social messaging apps Voice calls SMS Email
Daily

21. Skype is comfortably #1 for video
Skype’s global popularity is well known. Our
research shows that Skype is enjoying the top spot
among our 5 countries researched, with decent market
share even in Line-dominated Japan. Skype calls 300
million people users of its app.
45% 47% 49%
21% 21%
US UK Germany China Japan
% of smartphone owners using weekly
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=2500 , US, UK, Germany, Japan and China smartphone owners

22. ‘Social media is pretty much dead’ and social
messaging will take over
– Fred Wilson, Venture Capitalist (Twitter, Tumblr, Foursquare)
Source: Business Insider, Dec 2014.

23. Rohit Dadwal
Campaign Asia
Feb 2015

24. 50 billion messages a day
Shared via 6 services in 2014
iMessage, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Snapchat, BBM and WeChat
Source: Deloitte 2014
https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/au/Documents/technology-media-telecommunications/deloitte-au-tmt-short-messaging-services-
versus-instant-messaging-011014.pdf
= double the volume of SMS that were sent!

25. Undefeated champion for communication
Social messaging is most popular way to stay in touch in
developed markets.
Q: How often do you use these ways of staying in touch on your phone?
%ofrespondents
34%
18%
24%
15%
22%
29%
23% 21%
8%
14%
9%
13%
64%
60%
55%
49%
Social Messaging Voice calls SMS Email
Average of 5 countries
10+ times a day 2-3 times/day Once a day At least once/day combined
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=2500 , US, UK, Germany, Japan and China smartphone owners

26. On Device Research uses the mobile
internet to gain access to consumer
opinions at any time, place or country.
Want Excel tables
with the survey data?
Get in touch!

27. We have undertaken projects in
79 countries
Over 25 million people have
taken one of our surveys on
their mobile

28. ondeviceresearch.com
Follow us:
For more info:
PohLinCarter-Lau
pohlin@ondeviceresearch.com
@pohlinlau

29. Appendix

30. Source: On Device Research, November 2013
N=1406 in the US, n=544 in China, smartphone owners
US and UK most similar for communication
Q: How often do you use these ways of staying in touch on your phone?
33%
18%
37%
22%
70%
63% 65% 63%
Social messaging apps Voice calls SMS Email
More than 10 times a day Daily
40%
22%
42%
18%
74% 66% 75%
58%
Social messaging apps Voice calls SMS Email
More than 10 times a day Daily

31. Contrasting communication patterns in Asia
China prefers voice call and SMS, Japan favours email
Q: How often do you use these ways of staying in touch on your phone?
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=1000, Japan and China smartphone owners
Per country charts can be found in the annex at the end of the presentation.
23%
5% 11% 13%
45%
37% 35%
47%
Social messaging apps Voice calls SMS Email
More than 10 times a day Daily
23% 24%
15%
7%
51%
61%
53%
24%
Social messaging apps Voice calls SMS Email
More than 10 times a day Daily

32. Q: How often do you use these ways of staying in touch on your phone?
81% of Germans use social
messaging apps daily
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=500 , Germany smartphone owners
Germans are Super Social Messengers
54% use it at least
10x daily!

33. Germans use social messaging almost twice as
much as Japanese respondents
Q: How often do you use these ways of staying in touch on your phone? (Social messaging)
52%
40%
33%
23% 23%
81%
74%
70%
51%
45%
Germany UK USA China Japan
More than 10 times a day Daily
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=2500 , US, UK, Germany, Japan and China smartphone owners

34. All ages in China are active social
messenger users
2.1
3.2 3.1
2.8
2.4
2.6
2.9 3.0
2.3 2.2
2.0
2.5
2.9
1.7
2.0
1.8
2.3
3.0
1.8
2.1
Japan UK China USA Germany
16-24 25-34 35-44 45+
3
4
2
1
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=2500 , US, UK, Germany, Japan and China smartphone owners

35. Top 3 social messaging apps on smartphones
Research data from the US, UK, Germany, Japan and China
60%
29% 25%
Facebook
Messenger
Skype Twitter
75%
42%
25%
Line Twitter Facebook
Messenger
84% 83%
50%
Wechat QQ Sina Weibo
77%
49%
30%
Whatsapp Facebook
Messenger
Skype
63%
46%
36%
Facebook
Messenger
Whatsapp Skype
UK China
Japan
US
Germany
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=2500 , US, UK, Germany, Japan and China smartphone owners

36. Top 3 video call apps on smartphones
Research data from the US, UK, Germany, Japan and China (excluding WeChat and QQ)
45%
29%
21%
Skype Facetime Google
Hangouts
60%
21% 21%
Line Skype Facetime
33%
22% 21%
Facetime Line Skype
49%
20% 16%
Skype Facetime Google
Hangouts
47%
38%
14%
Skype Facetime Viber
UK China
Japan
US
Germany
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=2500 , US, UK, Germany, Japan and China smartphone owners

37. In China and UK, nearly half use WhatsApp
more than 6 months ago
Q: Compared to 6 months ago, do you use WhatsApp…
40%
39%
22%
About the same More Less
46% 46%
35% 35%
32%
China UK US Japan Germany
Use WhatsApp more than 6 months ago
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=2500 , US, UK, Germany, Japan and China smartphone owners

38. Facebook Messenger is leading growth for
Facebook portfolio
Source: comScore via quartz.com

39. 58%
52%52%
36%
Global 2013 Global 2015
Different friends use different apps Because of different features
Different features will no longer drive use of
multiple messenger apps.
Q: Why do you use different messaging apps?
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015
N=2500 , US, UK, Germany, Japan and China smartphone owners

40. In the US, respondents say
that ‘not having enough space
on their phone’ is the number
one reason why they’re not
using a messenger app
With paying upfront for
handset is common practice
in the US many opt for lowest
(and therefore cheapest)
storage capacity available –
often 16GB with no
expandable memory.
Source: On Device Research, Jan 2015, Which 2014
N=500 , US smartphone owners
Low storage capacity = less apps installed
Q: Why are you not using these messaging apps (one want to use but are currently not using)?