Mobile Internet Usage Field Survey: Ghana. Executive Summary

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1 Mobile Internet Usage Field Survey: Ghana Executive Summary November 2012

2 Overview In August 2012, Google and ihub Research completed a study on mobile Internet usage in Ghana. This was a follow-up to a smaller study on the same topic conducted in Kenya in February The target group for the Ghana study was a broad band of the middle class, both users and non-users of mobile Internet data services. The geographic focus was urban; rural users were outside the scope of this study. This document is an executive summary of the methodology and findings from the study. The study found that: Mobile data users spend more money to make calls and send SMS messages than to use mobile Internet. Users use pay-as-you-go even though they believe that bundles are cheaper. Users and non-users do not have an accurate understanding of mobile Internet costs and many believe they are billed by time. Fewer users monitor mobile Internet spend, compared to voice/sms balances. Improved transparency into mobile Internet spending might convert non-users. Users and non-users would be motivated to use mobile Internet at lower prices. Speed and cost are major challenges for mobile Internet users. For non-users, however, other issues overshadow speed and service cost, including technical complexity/illiteracy, lack of demand/awareness, and handset costs. Methodology The study sought to survey an equal number of adult men and women. The survey was conducted in two cities, Accra and Sunyani.[1] Respondents were recruited in public locations (churches, markets, transportation stations) in each city and compensated with GHc 5 (USD 2.50) of mobile credit. In both cities, data was collected using a paper questionnaire and an additional set of in-depth interview questions. Researchers administered 798 completed questionnaires over a period of 15 days from June 3-17, This included 604 users of mobile Internet (220 of whom participated in the in-depth interview) and 194 non-users (all of whom participated in the in-depth interview). Respondents self-identified as users or nonusers of mobile data, but all respondents used mobile phones and all used prepaid plans. Potential respondents were screened based on a middle-class monthly income level (between GHc ). If candidates were uncomfortable sharing income, they were screened based on asset ownership. 2

3 Gender While the study aimed for equal representation, the sample included more male users. Among female candidates, there were more non-users than users and it was not possible to fill the quota of female users for this study. Among non-users, 58% of participants were male and 42% were female; among users, 59% were male and 41% were female. Age The study screener used the following age brackets: 18-25, 26-40, 41-65, and 65+. The majority of users fell between the ages of Researchers did not encounter any user over 65. They found non-users in all age brackets. (Note: Ghana s population is young, with estimates of 60% of the population under the age of 25.) Education Education levels ranged from no formal education to completed master s degrees. Of 798 participants, 400 had completed senior secondary school (equivalent to high school in the US). 3

4 Occupation Among users, students formed the largest group (30%), followed closely by employed (30%). Another 8% stated their profession as professionals, while 9% were traders. [2] Among non-users, traders made up the largest group (26%), followed by employed (16%). Students formed the third-largest group (10%). 4

5 Key Findings Prepaid mobile phone service plans require customers to top up their account balance with a cash payment when credit is used up or expires. Credit can be applied to various services including voice calls, SMS (text) messages, and mobile Internet at varying rates. Mobile Internet can be consumed from regular credit balances at a pay-as-you-go rate, or consumed from a bucket of designated data units (a data bundle ) at discounted rates. Mobile data users spend more money to make calls and send SMS messages than to use mobile Internet. Most users of mobile Internet (48%) spend less than GHc 5 (USD 2.50) per week on mo- 5

6 bile data, while 28% spend less than GHc 5 on voice calls per week. Phones were topped up more frequently to make calls and send SMS messages than to browse the Internet. Approximately half of users top up their mobile accounts daily in order to make calls and send SMS messages, compared to 37% of users who top up daily in order to use mobile Internet. 6

7 Users use pay-as-you-go even though they believe that bundles are cheaper. Among users, 71% pay for mobile Internet access primarily based on actual usage (payas-you-go), compared to 20% who rely on prepaid data bundles. Eight percent use both pay-as-you-go and data bundles. However, 49% believe that bundles are less expensive, while 40% believe that pay-as-you-go is less expensive. 7

8 Users and non-users do not have an accurate understanding of mobile Internet costs and many believe they are billed by time. Website cost and size were not well estimated by mobile Internet users. Only 19% of users were able to correctly order four mobile activities by cost. Many users also believe they are billed by time as opposed to volume. 8

9 Fewer users monitor mobile Internet spend, compared to voice/sms balances. Three-quarters of users keep track of their voice/sms balances, compared to 38% who keep track of their mobile Internet balance. Thirty-seven percent of users have accidentally spent more money than they intended on mobile Internet.[3] Improved transparency into mobile Internet spending might convert non-users. Of the non-users who are already keeping track of their voice/sms balances, 28% responded that better knowledge of mobile Internet spending could convert them to becoming mobile Internet users. Among users, 42% stated that they would increase their mobile Internet usage if they could monitor their mobile Internet expenses more easily. 9

10 Users and non-users would be motivated to use mobile Internet at lower prices. Many users are comfortable with current mobile Internet rates (prices); however, 64% stated that they would use mobile Internet more if rates were lower. Speed and cost are major challenges for mobile Internet users. Unsurprisingly, speed and cost were the top two complaints users had about mobile Internet. Fifty-four percent complained about slow connection speeds, followed by 18% who complained about cost. For non-users, however, other issues overshadow speed and service cost, including technical complexity/illiteracy, lack of demand/ awareness, and handset costs. A number of non-users cited lack of awareness of how to use the Internet or how to use or configure a data-enabled phone as a reason for impeding their adoption of mobile Internet. A small number of non-users simply stated that they were uninterested in either mobile Internet or a data-enabled handset. Finally, 46% of respondents indicated that they did not own a data-enabled handset, with the majority (72%) citing handset costs as the primary reason why. This study was conceived, funded by, and written in collaboration with Google. 10

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14 FOOTNOTES: [1] Accra is the capital of Ghana, a sprawling city located on the southeast coast. Its population is estimated at between three to four million people. Sunyani is the capital of the Brong-Ahafo region in the western part of Ghana. It is a bustling city of 80,000 people, with a regional hospital, a poly-technique/training college, and major banking outlets. [2] Employed respondents in most cases had some income from unspecified activities. For example, professional respondents included those working in public offices. [3] Of these users, 31% cited large media files such as music, videos, and pictures, as the culprit. 14

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