Consumers Desire More Voice and Video Chat Capabilities, CEA Emerging Tech Studies Find

Arlington, VA – – The recent rise of mobile devices has increased consumer demand for voice-to-text, text-to-voice, voice control and video chat capabilities, according to the latest series of studies released by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)®. Three Eye on Emerging Technology studies – Voice-to-Text and Text-to-Voice, Voice Control and Video Chat – each take an in-depth look at consumer awareness, interest, ownership, satisfaction, future usage expectations, adoption trends and desired improvements in mobile device features and operation.

The first step for adoption of any new product or technology is awareness, and the CEA studies show consumer awareness of all three technologies is high. Awareness is comparable for voice-to-text and text-to-voice technologies, with nearly 50 percent of the online U.S. adult population having seen or heard something about the technology in the past 12 months. Awareness of voice control and video chat technologies also are high, with 62 percent and 65 percent, respectively, of online U.S. adults having some familiarity with the specific feature.

Consumer interest in owning a device capable of these technologies also is considerable; voice-to-text ranks slightly higher than text-to-voice, with one-third (34 percent) of those surveyed interested in ownership, compared to 29 percent for text-to-voice. One-third (34 percent) of consumers express interest in future ownership of devices with voice control capabilities, and 23 percent express interest in video chat abilities.

“Mobile devices, such as powerful smartphones and tablet computers, are increasingly coming to market with these features already built in and have, in turn, catapulted these technologies into the realm of consumer desires,” said Kevin Tillmann, senior research analyst, CEA. “These technologies are quickly becoming an integral part of Americans’ lives and are significantly changing the way in which consumers interact with their tech devices.”

The studies also identified areas of desired improvements. More than three quarters (77 percent) of voice-to-text users would like to have better speech recognition technology, and nearly two thirds (63 percent) of text-to-voice users expressed the same desire. Nearly half (49 percent) of consumers would like to see improved reliability of voice control technology and over half (55 percent) of video chat users would like to see improved video quality.

The series of studies, Eye on Emerging Tech: Voice-to-Text and Text-to-Voice, Voice Control and Video Chat, were conducted in August 2012. The studies were designed and formulated by CEA Market Research, the most comprehensive source of sales data, forecasts, consumer research and historical trends for the consumer electronics industry. Please cite any information to the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)®. The complete studies are available free to CEA member companies at members.CE.org. Non-members may purchase the studies at the CEA Store.

About CEA

The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) is the preeminent trade association promoting growth in the $209 billion U.S. consumer electronics industry. More than 2,000 companies enjoy the benefits of CEA membership, including legislative advocacy, market research, technical training and education, industry promotion, standards development and the fostering of business and strategic relationships. CEA also owns and produces the International CES – The Global Stage for Innovation. All profits from CES are reinvested into CEA’s industry services. Find CEA online: www.CE.org and www.DeclareInnovation.com. Follow CES at www.CESweb.org and through both CEA and CES social media channels.