Video calling and video chat
19% of Americans have tried video calls or
video chat or teleconferencing online and on
cell phones
By Lee Rainie, Director
Kathryn Zickuhr, Web Coordinator
10/13/2010
http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2010/Video-chat.aspx
Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project
1615 L St., NW – Suite 700
Washington, D.C. 20036
202-419-4500 | pewinternet.orghttp://pewinternet.org Page 2
Overview
Almost a fifth of American adults – 19% – have tried video calling either online or via their cell phones.
That figure comes from adding up the number of adults who said they either had made a video or
teleconferencing call online (17% of adults have done that) or made video calls on their cell phones (6%
of adults have done that). In many cases people have placed video calls on both the internet and their
cell phone. Those who answered yes to both questions were only counted once in the overall tally of
video callers.
These figures translate into 23% of internet users and 7% of cell phone owners who have participated in
video calls, chats, or teleconferences.
These figures were gathered in a survey of 3,001 American adults (age 18 and older) between August 9
and September 13, 2010. The margin of error is +/- 3 percentage points.
This is the first survey of the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project that has covered
both online and cell-phone video calls, so there are no prior comparable data to show how much the
activity is increasing. In the internet realm, the video-calling has risen modestly from 20% of internet
users in April 2009 to 23% of internet users in the summer 2010 survey. On any given day, 4% of internet
users are participating in video calls, video chat, or teleconferencing, up from 2% in April 2009.
Some of the key findings in the most recent survey related to online video calls, which are conducted by
23% of the adults who are internet users:
Video calling online is especially appealing to upscale users. A third of internet users (34%)
living in households earning $75,000 or above have participated in such calls or chats,
compared with 18% of those earning less than $75,000.
Younger internet users are considerably more likely to conduct video calls. Some 29% of the
internet users ages 18-29 have participated in video calls or chats or teleconferences,
compared with 15% of internet users age 65 or older.
Online men are more likely than online women to participate in online video calls (26% vs.
20%).
Urban internet users (27%) and suburban users (23%) are significantly more likely than rural
users (12%) to have participated in video calls, chats, or teleconferences.
On a typical day, 4% of internet users participate in video calls, chats, or teleconferences.
That is a uptick from the Project’s April 2009 survey, when 2% of internet users reported
participating in online video exchanges.
Some of the key findings in the most recent survey related to video calls on cell phones, which are
conducted by 7% of the adults who cell phone owners:
Cell-owning blacks are more likely than whites to participate in video calls, chats, or
teleconferences (10% vs. 5%).
Those in upper-income households are more likely than others to participate in video calls
(10% of cell owners in households earning over $75,000 participate in such calls, compared
to 6% who live in households earning less than $75,000.http://pewinternet.org Page 3
Cell owners under age 50 are more likely than those over age 50 to have participated in such
video calls (8% vs. 4%).
Background
Video calling has become increasingly available as camcorders have spread through the online
environment, cameras have been built into smart phones, and as video-chat services like Skype, Google
Talk, and Apple iChat have become a feature of the online and smart phone environment.
Teleconferencing is also becoming more embedded in the business environment.
This summer, in a nationally-representative telephone survey using landlines and cell phones, the Pew
Research Center’s Internet & American Project asked for the first time about the prevalence of video
calling both online and on cell phones.
The survey of 3,001 adults found that 74% of American adults are internet users and, among those
internet users, 23% have participated in video calls, chats, or teleconferences. The survey also found
that 85% of American adults have cell phones and, among those cell owners, 7% have used their phones
for video calls, chats, or teleconferences. Overall, that means that 19% of Americans have either used
the internet or their cell phone to participate in video calls – and in many cases, people have used both
technologies for video chats.
Internet-based video calls, chats, teleconferences
In April 2009, the Pew Internet Project asked internet users about video calls and found at the time that
20% of them had participated in such calls. So, there has been a slight uptick in the number of
Americans who use the internet for video calling – from 20% in April 2009 to 23% in the summer 2010
survey. The Project’s survey also asked people if they had participated in such calls “yesterday” and the
surveys show that the percentage of video callers online on any given day rose from 2% in April 2009 to
4% in the summer of 2010.
The following table gives a breakdown of the demographic differences among internet users when it
comes to video calling, chatting, or teleconferencing.http://pewinternet.org Page 4
Online video calls, chats, and teleconferences
74% of American adults use the internet. This table shows the percentage of internet users in
each group who have participated in video calls, chats, or teleconferences on their cell phone.
Total internet users 23%
Gender
Male 26
Female 20
Race
White 21
Black 21
Hispanic 28
Age (at time of survey)
18-29 29
30-49 25
50-64 16
65+ 15
Education
Some high school 12
High school graduate 16
Some college 24
College graduate or more 30
Household income
< $30,000 15
$30,000 - $49,999 18
$50,000 - $74,999 23
$75,000+ 34
Language
English 23
Spanish 28
Community type
Rural 12
Suburban 23
Urban 27
Home connection
Broadband 26
No Broadband 8
Source: Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project, August 9 – September 13,
2010 Tracking Survey. N=3,001 adults 18 and older and margin of error is +/- 3 percentage
points; n= 2,065 based on internet users and margin of error is +/- 3 percentage points.http://pewinternet.org Page 5
Cell phone use for video calls, chats, teleconferences
For the first time, Pew Internet asked cell phone owners about video calls, chats, and teleconferences
and found that 7% of cell owners have taken advantage of that feature. Video activities are far less
common than other cell features. For instance, in the same survey, Pew Internet found that 74% of cell
owners use text messaging features, 39% use their phones to access the internet, 34% use them for
email, and 30% use them for instant messaging.
The following table gives a breakdown of the demographic differences among cell owners when it
comes to video calling, chatting, or teleconferencing.http://pewinternet.org Page 6
Cell phone video calls, chats, and teleconferences
85% of American adults own cell phones. This table shows the percentage of cell
phone owners in each group who have participated in video calls, chats, or
teleconferences on their cell phone.
Total cell phone owners 7%
Gender
Male 8
Female 6
Race
White 5
Black 10
Hispanic 9
Age (at time of survey)
18-29 9
30-49 8
50-64 4
65+ 3
Education
Some high school 2
High school graduate 4
Some college 6
College graduate or more 11
Household income
< $30,000 4
$30,000 - $49,999 7
$50,000 - $74,999 9
$75,000+ 10
Language
English 7
Spanish 5
Community type
Rural 4
Suburban 7
Urban 8
Home connection
Broadband 8
No Broadband 2
Source: Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project, August 9 –
September 13, 2010 Tracking Survey. N=3,001 adults 18 and older and margin of
error is +/- 3 percentage points; n=2,485 based on cell phone users and margin of
error is +/- 3 percentage points.http://pewinternet.org Page 7
Methodology
This report is based on the findings of a daily tracking survey on Americans' use of the Internet. The
results in this report are based on data from telephone interviews conducted by Princeton Survey
Research Associates International between August 9 and September 13, 2010, among a sample of 3,001
adults, age 18 and older. Interviews were conducted in English and Spanish. For results based on the
total sample, one can say with 95% confidence that the error attributable to sampling is plus or minus
2.5 percentage points. For results based Internet users (n=2,065), the margin of sampling error is plus or
minus 2.9 percentage points. In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in
conducting telephone surveys may introduce some error or bias into the findings of opinion polls.
A combination of landline and cellular random digit dial (RDD) samples was used to represent all adults
in the continental United States who have access to either a landline or cellular telephone. Both samples
were provided by Survey Sampling International, LLC (SSI) according to PSRAI specifications. The
landline sample for this survey was designed to generalize to the U.S. adult population and to
oversample African-Americans and Hispanics. To achieve these objectives in a cost effective manner, the
design uses standard list-assisted random digit dialing (RDD) methodology, but telephone numbers are
drawn disproportionately from telephone exchanges with higher than average density of AfricanAmerican
and/or Hispanic households. The cellular sample was not list-assisted, but was drawn through
a systematic sampling from dedicated wireless 100-blocks and shared service 100-blocks with no
directory-listed landline numbers.
New sample was released daily and was kept in the field for at least five days. The sample was released
in replicates, which are representative subsamples of the larger population. This ensures that complete
call procedures were followed for the entire sample. At least 7 attempts were made to complete an
interview at a sampled telephone number. The calls were staggered over times of day and days of the
week to maximize the chances of making contact with a potential respondent. Each number received at
least one daytime call in an attempt to find someone available. For the landline sample, half of the time
interviewers first asked to speak with the youngest adult male currently at home. If no male was at
home at the time of the call, interviewers asked to speak with the youngest adult female. For the other
half of the contacts interviewers first asked to speak with the youngest adult female currently at home.
If no female was available, interviewers asked to speak with the youngest adult male at home. For the
cellular sample, interviews were conducted with the person who answered the phone. Interviewers
verified that the person was an adult and in a safe place before administering the survey. Cellular
sample respondents were offered a post-paid cash incentive for their participation. All interviews
completed on any given day were considered to be the final sample for that day.
Disproportionate sampling and non-response in telephone interviews can produce biases in surveyderived
estimates. The dataset was weighted in two stages. The first stage of weighting corrected for
the disproportionate landline sample design and also accounted for the overlapping landline and cellular
sample frames as well as different probabilities of selection associated with the number of adults in the
household. The second stage of weighting matched overall sample demographics to population
parameters. The demographic weighting parameters are derived from a special analysis of the most
recently available Census Bureau’s March 2009 Annual Social and Economic Supplement. This analysis
produces population parameters for the demographic characteristics of adults age 18 or older. These
parameters are then compared with the sample characteristics to construct sample weights. The
weights are derived using an iterative technique that simultaneously balances the distribution of all
weighting parameters.http://pewinternet.org Page 8
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