World Peace, Consumption Clout and Digital Rules |
Written by Synovate | |
30 Jun 2005 | |
World peace, consumption clout and digital rules: Young Asians give their take on the world Today's young Asian is a multi-tasking, interactive, digital-driven consumer according to Young Asians, a new study released today by leading global market research company, Synovate. Synovate Director of Media Research Asia Pacific, Steve Garton, said the survey, a first for the region, threw the door wide open on the lives of Young Asians aged eight to 24, exposing their spending habits, media consumption, favourite brands, dreams and aspirations. "Conducted in conjunction with MSN, MTV and Yahoo!, Young Asians is a comprehensive study conducted across eight markets that reveals the hearts and minds of Asia's connected youth," he said. "The survey provides an essential 'finger on the pulse' of what defines Young Asians today." So, 'wassup' with Young Asians? "A consumption crazy, aspirational, driven generation, they are money-focussed yet moral, school is important and success everything. Their favourite food is fast, favourite drink is soft and preferred birthday gift a mobile phone." The study found that while Young Asians start off wanting be doctors, by the time they hit 15 the desire for money develops and the career of choice becomes a business owner. Their preferred sports to play are badminton and basketball/netball while basketball and soccer are the sports of choice for watching or reading. Mr Garton said that the consumption clout of today's youth is substantial with eight in ten Young Asians influencing family shopping for soft drinks and snacks, three quarters influencing the family visit for fast food and six in ten influencing the TV channel watched when sharing the viewing. "However, it's not all sport and shopping. Today's Young Asians worry about the future ahead and what being an adult may hold for them. A secure job is the number one concern about growing up for 19% of Young Asians, while 16% worry about being financially stable and 9% worry about adult responsibilities. "There's a sense of excitement about adult life though, with 16% looking forward to the prospect of having a family, 15% ready to be independent and influential and 9% eager to enjoy adult activities like drinking, travelling...and having sex," he said. A clich? that has graced the lips of many a politician and beauty queen still holds true for Young Asians, 18% of whom voted world peace as the number one change they would make to the world. A further 16% are aspiring activists, wanting to change social problems like drugs and corruption. "But don't be fooled by this altruistic bunch, for 15% of Young Asians named 'themselves' as the one thing they would change about the world, wanting to be more popular, better looking, or simply famous," Mr Garton said. The Internet and digital technology are fundamental to Young Asian lives, fuelling their desire to stay connected and central to their interaction with peers. 62% have their own mobile phone, 45% have their own desktop computer and half of 12 to 24 years olds name the Internet as the most helpful medium for product and service information over TV (32%) and newspapers (10%). While listening to their MP3 players (owned by 23% of respondents) you'll find Young Asians searching the web for information, emailing, downloading entertainment and interacting with their friends, and games, online. And this trend will grow, with one third of Young Asians indicating that they expected to be spending more time on the Internet next year compared to this year. President of MTV Networks Asia Pacific, Frank Brown, was pleased to note that the results identified MTV as the channel attracting the highest Young Asian viewership. Besides audience numbers, he said this study "reconfirmed MTV's leadership and influence among Asian youth and young adults". "This Young Asians study helps keep MTV on the cutting edge of youth multimedia, with up-to-date insights on the most influential young Asians who lead their peers and are continually at the forefront of technology adoption," he said. Regional Trade Marketing Manager MSN Asia, Sally Ip, said the Young Asians survey provided a unique insight into the extent to which digital technology had affected the lives of the world's first generation of people to grow up with the Internet as an integral part of everyday life. "A rare glimpse into the life and times of today's digital generation, Young Asians shows just how extensively digital technology and the Internet have affected their habits, with email and instant messaging becoming central to keeping in touch with their friends and the world," she said. Head of Sales Yahoo! Hong Kong, Ivy Wong, said "The results of Young Asians show that teenagers rely heavily on the Internet for product and information sourcing. This reinforces the Internet as essential media for marketers who wish to reach out to this affluent group of potential customers. "To talk to today's youth you need to communicate with them interactively rather than use pure advertisements. Internet portals provide a comprehensive tool for reaching the connected Young Asian audience, ensuring messages are heard and responded to," she said. The study includes a segment of Young Asians with the highest household incomes across the region that can be linked with the respected Synovate PAX study of affluent Asian adults. "Linking the income levels of affluent Young Asians with the Synovate PAX study provides the regions' first seamless picture of high-end consumption and product ownership from youth through to adulthood, giving rich insights into the changing patterns of consumption throughout people's lives" Mr Garton added. Contact for this press release Linda Collard Senior Communications Manager, Asia Pacific Telephone: +852 2830 2588 or +852 9742 9429 Fax: Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Henrietta Sung (for Chinese media) Telephone: +852 2839 0682 Fax: Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it About Young Asians Synovate Young Asians is an industry-wide tracking survey that provides credible, relevant information on the media, purchasing and leisure habits of Asians aged eight to 24. The study includes a segment of Young Asians with the highest household incomes across the region that can be linked with the respected Synovate PAX study of affluent Asian adults. Conducted across eight Asian markets including Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines and India, Young Asians provides detailed information on consumption and attitudes from childhood to early adulthood to meet the needs of regional media, marketing and advertising specialists. About Synovate Synovate, the market research arm of Aegis Group plc, generates consumer insights that drive competitive marketing solutions. The network provides clients with cohesive global support and a comprehensive suite of research solutions. Synovate employs over 4,000 staff across 46 countries. More information on Synovate can be found at http://www.synovate.com/. About MSN MSN - attracts more than 400 million unique users worldwide per month. Globally available in 40 markets and 20 languages, MSN is a world leader in delivering Web services to consumers and digital marketing solutions to businesses worldwide. The most useful and innovative online service today, MSN brings consumers everything they need from the Web to make the most of their time online. MSN is located on the Web at http://www.msn.com/. MSN worldwide sites are located at http://www.msn.com/worldwide.ashx About MTV Networks Asia Pacific MTV Networks Asia Pacific comprise of three distinctly branded channels in the region reaching more than 180 million households across the region: MTV, the world's largest television network and the leading multimedia brand for youth, Nickelodeon, the leading entertainment brand dedicated exclusively to kids and VH1, the music video network that keeps adult viewers connected to the music they love. In Asia, MTV and Nickelodeon's businesses also include branded consumer products, programme sales and digital media comprising of eight websites and mobile platforms. MTV Networks Asia Pacific has a total of 20 (10 MTV, 6 Nickelodeon and 4 VH1) channels which are seen via 24-hour and programming blocks. About Yahoo! Hong Kong Yahoo! Hong Kong (http://www.yahoo.com.hk/) is part of Yahoo! Inc's global network. Yahoo! Inc. is the No. 1 Internet brand globally and the most trafficked Internet destination worldwide. Yahoo! provides online products and services essential to consumers' lives, and offers a full range of tools and marketing solutions for businesses to connect with Internet users around the world. Yahoo! is headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif. |
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Last Updated ( 23 May 2007 ) |