The National Commission for Markets and Competition (CNMC) shows a notable change in the way of communication among Spaniards, as shown by the data published in the CNMC Household Panel report for the IV Quarter of 2022. In the document have analyzed the uses of the Internet and OTT services in Spain and the conclusions are clear. 93.6% of users use WhatsApp to send messages and make video calls, and 42% of Spaniards no longer use their landline to call.
In the last 15 years, the mobile phone industry has evolved in such a way that it is hardly necessary to make a call to communicate with whoever you want. The constant development of smartphones together with the advent of instant messaging applications and social networks that also allow interaction with other Internet users have led to this change. Thus, the report details that “nine out of ten Spaniards used the Internet at least once in the last three months. Of them, almost 80% connected to the network on a daily basis”.
56.1% of these users who connected regularly regularly used the social network Facebook. The second most demanded is Instagram (49.8), followed by TikTok (23.6%), Twitter (21.8%), Linkedin (10.7%) and Pinterest (10.1%).
This high percentage of the use of instant messaging applications – 70% of Spaniards use WhatsApp daily – goes hand in hand with another relevant data highlighted in the document: 42% do not use a landline phone and, furthermore, 60 % does not send SMS from the mobile.
Reviewing this information in detail, the CNMC specifies that only 6.6% of users use the landline to call several times a day, 11.6% almost every day, and 12.2% do so weekly. Extremely low percentages compared to mobile phones, since 32.3% make several calls a day with this device.
Although instant messaging applications and social networks such as Instagram or Facebook Messenger allow calls and/or video calls, together they do not exceed the percentage of users who continue to call by mobile phone. And it is that only 8.5% of Spaniards use these platforms to call their contacts several times a day, 11% almost every day and 19.1% do so weekly.
As we said, in the last 15 years mobile phones have evolved drastically. In fact, mobile phones gave way to smartphones, smart phones. But that term was not born less than two decades ago. In fact, in 1992 the first prototype was created which, after several changes, was marketed in 1994 under the name ‘Simon Personal Communicator’.
That device had a touch screen and incorporated functions such as sending emails. It also had a calculator, a world time clock, a notepad, news, and even maps. Some functions that incorporate current smartphones and that are among the tools most used by users.
As the study shows, four out of ten Spaniards use their mobile phones to check their email (42.3%). With less use, video playback services (26.8%), games (20.8%) and GPS location services (9.4%) stand out.