PC Use by Ethnicity

Risking Running Afoul of Political Correctness

Written by Aaron Goldberg, Chief Editor, Ziff-Davis
September 2, 1999

Sometimes the data I peruse is really interesting to look at, but the potential for my getting explosive responses causes me to pause. But, what the heck, the data I am talking about today is very sound, well developed, and shows some very interesting information. Still, whenever the subject, race or ethnicity, is the topic, it becomes a difficult minefield to navigate without getting oneself in trouble....

First, what is this ethnicity data presented here? It comes from an InfoBeads study we do every year using the Market Facts consumer mail panel of US homes. And the data here talks about results from this sample of respondents.

And, based on my introduction, it goes without saying that this data is more than interesting! While there are those that might like to make conclusions about the data that follows stereotypes (very high use among Asians, less so for other groups), it's more useful to look past a snap analysis that might fit pre-conceptions.

 

Source:  Technology User Profile

One of the factors that I find most interesting is that the latest huge wave of home PC penetration has not only been found in one or two ethnic groups. Rather, nearly all ethnicity’s called out in our sample saw huge increases the PC ownership level within homes. Every group showed double-digit increases in home penetration for combined consumer and self-employed usage patterns. This shows there is likely to be less of a schism in PC ownership among ethnic groups, based on the recent price declines and new "free PC" programs.

The other interesting finding in this data (one of many I admit) is that usage levels at the office have not been increasing at nearly the same rate. All groups only had single-digit increases, and some were quite small. Does this mean that PC use in the workplace has become a plateau? Not really, just that it would appear that more and more people will be learning about PC use based on their consumer or home experiences, and not being as heavily influenced by what occurs in their office. This has important marketing implications for vendors as they will have to contend with customers that don't have the depth of experience in PC usage that those who started using a PC in the office did.

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