Over 20% of UK Households Have Smart Speakers while Germany Passes 10% and Ireland Approaches That Milestone
New data from Strategy Analytics show that over 1-in-5 UK households had a smart speaker as of the end of June 2019. That translates into 5.8 million households and a reach of over 10 million users. Germany has also passed 11% with smart speakers in 4.8 million households with a population of about 9.5 million potential users. Households in Ireland are nearing 10% while France trails at 7.4%. These figures contrast with Loup Ventures’ estimate that between 28% – 33% of U.S. households have a device today.
Ireland and France trail the UK and Germany in household adoption, in part, because smart speakers have not been available for purchase as long. However, both showed faster growth rates in the first half of 2019 in terms of household expansion. In the first six months of 2019, the number of French and Irish households with smart speakers rose 40% and 28% respectively, compared to 22% in Germany and 21% in the U.K.
Growth for Amazon and Google
Although smart speakers from Apple and other manufacturers are available in these countries, 87% of the device sales in Europe are going to Amazon and Google according to research by IDC. Historically, about half of the smart speakers in a year are sold in the fourth quarter and those sales will go to both existing and new households. That means you can expect the household adoption figures to climb further before 2019 concludes.
The household adoption figures are also bound to be viewed as important by consumer marketers. Smart speakers represent a consumer connection endpoint in the home and Alexa and Google Assistant provide a means for marketers to connect with their customers in new ways. That connection becomes a more powerful lure for marketers as the scale of consumer adoption increases. Twenty percent penetration in the UK is a figure that few will ignore.
Follow @bretkinsella Follow @voicebotai
