Velti Survey Shows Over 40% of U.S. Adults Will Live-Stream Olympics on Smartphone/Tablet

Velti (NASDAQ: VELT), the leading global provider of mobile marketing and advertising technology, today shared the results of a nationwide poll showing 40 percent of those who plan to follow the Olympics this summer will do so on two or more devices. The results also revealed that 35 percent of U.S. adults will turn to their tablet for news and coverage, while 27 percent will use their smartphone. The study was commissioned by Velti and conducted online by Harris Interactive® in June among 2,088 U.S. adults.

Among those turning to smartphones or tablets to track the games, online browsers trump application usage on both devices. Of those using a smartphone who will follow the Olympics, 77 percent will tune in using a browser (reading articles/blogs, viewing video clips, streaming live coverage or via social networking sites) while 63 percent will use an app (specifically designed for Olympics coverage, general news app or social networking app) for updates. Among tablet users, 80 percent will use a browser and only 58 percent will utilize apps.

Of those using a smartphone to follow the games, 45 percent will access video clips and replays, while 41 percent plan to stream live coverage via a browser. Fifty percent of tablet users will watch videos and replays on their browser, while 45 percent will stream live coverage. This is the first year the Olympic Games will stream all 32 sports live.

“This survey reveals that a significant number of Americans are choosing to consume Olympic content on the go, and while doing so they’re overwhelmingly turning to mobile browsers,” said Krishna Subramanian, Chief Marketing Officer of Velti. “Further, the Olympic audience is becoming more fragmented. For brands that want to reach Olympic viewers, this is an important finding as it highlights the ability to look beyond TV and focus on secondary devices such as smartphones and tablets.”

Of those who plan to follow the games on two or more devices, younger adults are more likely than their older counterpoints to do so. Of those 18 – 44 years old, 44 percent plan to use two or more devices while only 34 percent of those age 55+ plan to. Fourteen percent of U.S. adults who will follow the Olympic games will do so by using 3 or more devices. Overall, men are more likely than women to follow the games on three or more devices (18% vs. 11%, respectively).

Additional interesting findings:

• Of those who will follow the Olympics this summer: 36 percent will follow the games on a TV and a computer; 11 percent will use a TV and their smartphone; 10 percent will use a computer and their smartphone.
• A significant amount (39%) of U.S. adults using their smartphones to follow the games will also be doing so by communicating with their peers via talk and/or text. Thirty-two percent plan to text with others about the Olympics, and 21 percent will talk on the phone with others about the Olympics.
• Overall, among men between the ages of 18-34, 83 percent plan to follow the Olympics at all, vs. only 71 percent of females in the same age group.

Survey Methodology

This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of Velti from June 29-July 3, 2012 among 2,088 adults ages 18 and older. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables, please contact Victoria Krammen at vkrammen@sutherlandgold.com.

About Velti

Velti is the leading global provider of mobile marketing and advertising technology and solutions that enable brands, advertising agencies, mobile operators and media to implement highly targeted, interactive and measurable campaigns by communicating with and engaging consumers via their mobile devices. The Velti platform, called Velti mGage™, allows customers to use mobile and traditional media to reach targeted consumers, engage the consumer through the mobile Internet and applications, convert them into customers and continue to actively manage the relationship through the mobile channel. Velti is a publicly held corporation based in Jersey, and trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol VELT. For more information, visit www.velti.com.

About Harris Interactive

Harris Interactive is one of the world’s leading market research firms, leveraging research, technology, and business acumen to transform relevant insight into actionable foresight. Known widely for the Harris Poll® and for pioneering innovative research methodologies, Harris offers proprietary solutions in the areas of market and customer insight, corporate brand and reputation strategy, and marketing, advertising, public relations and communications research. Harris possesses expertise in a wide range of industries including health care, technology, public affairs, energy, telecommunications, financial services, insurance, media, retail, restaurant, and consumer package goods. Additionally, Harris has a portfolio of multi-client offerings that complement our custom solutions while maximizing our client’s research investment. Serving clients in more than 215 countries and territories through our North American and European offices, Harris specializes in delivering research solutions that help us – and our clients – stay ahead of what’s next. For more information, please visit www.harrisinteractive.com.