18 Highlights from Mary Meeker’s Internet Trends 2018 report

Every year, Mary Meeker of Kleiner Perkins releases a report showcasing the current trends in the internet and technology space. This year, we filtered through 294 slides and summarised what we thought were the most interesting stats. If you want to see the full report, click here.

1) Internet adoption

Over half the world population, or about 3.6 billion people, are on the internet as of 2018. This is thanks impart to the affordable smartphones and Wi-Fi options that have become widely available.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

2) Digital media consumption

U.S. adults are online more than ever before. In 2017, they spent 5.9 hours per day on digital media, up from 5.6 hours in the previous year. Most of these hours were spent on mobile devices (3.3 hours).

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

3) Consumers don’t mind a smaller screen

As mobile devices and data plans get cheaper and as Wi-Fi access becomes a commonality, it’s no surprise that consumers are watching videos on the go despite having to do so on smaller screens.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

4) Subscription services

Consumer behaviour is shifting towards subscription services, which are seeing tremendous year on year growth, driven by access, experience, price, and personalisation. A Netflix subscription, for example, only costs a few dollars a month, and grants consumers access to almost an unlimited amount of content.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

5) Data collection, personalisation, and privacy paradox

As apps collect more data about their users, they can create richer features and content at a more affordable rate. But this comes at a cost, they must ensure that this data is protected and not improperly used.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

6) Live streaming, a new form of entertainment

When you combine live streaming with gaming, you get a recipe for endless hours of entertainment. Twitch users alone have generated almost 18 million hours of streamed content in 2017.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

7) Growth of messaging

WhatsApp, WeChat, and Facebook Messenger continue to grow with billions of users.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

8) Voice controlled products

Voice controlled products aren’t just a fad. Amazon Echo’s installed based in the U.S. grew to over 30 million at the end of 2017. And the number of Echo skills developed by users and businesses continue to soar. This is an exciting time for voice controlled products.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

9) E-commerce

E-commerce continues to take a bigger percentage of retail sales worldwide, with China leading the way.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

10) Trending Apps

Instead of lifestyle apps and games, consumers are shifting more of their time towards shopping, entertainment, and business apps.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

11) Digital payments

Gone are the days when people were afraid of using their credit cards online. As digital payments become increasingly simple, easy, and flexible, it’s no surprise that 60% of all transactions were digital in 2017.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

12) Cryptocurrencies

Interest in cryptocurrencies are growing exponentially, as Coinbase quadrupled their user base last year. It’s still very early for these types of currencies, but it may very well be the future of payment and finance.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

13) Mobile advertising shift continues

There’s a large gap between the percentage of time spent on mobile versus the percentage of ad spending on it, presenting a $7 billion opportunity.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

Mobile advertising spend has clearly surpassed desktop advertising for the first time.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

14) Social media driving product discovery and purchases

People are discovering new products on social media platforms. In the US, 55% of consumers bought a product online after learning about them on social media.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

15) Investments in tech companies

Public and private investments in US tech companies are trending towards its all time high.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

And tech companies are leading the way on research, development, and expenditure.

16) Top 20 worldwide internet leaders

China is becoming a tech powerhouse. Only Tencent and Baidu was on this list 5 years ago.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

17) Healthcare Consumerisation

This is a new and interesting trend. Consumers can find and book physicians and meet them a different locations, get health insurance subscriptions, and have their medications delivered on demand, via apps.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

18) On-demand jobs and services

People are looking for flexibility and creating their own schedules, both in their personal and professional lives. This is why on-demand hospitality, transportation, and e-commerce platforms are growing rapidly. With these platforms, they can easily create an additional stream of income, replace their current full time job, or launch their own business.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins

It’s no surprise that on-demand transportation trips are on the rise, as it provides a more affordable and flexible alternative than having to own a vehicle.

Source: Internet Trends Report 2018 - Mary Meeker - Kleiner Perkins