Majority of Digital Travel Researchers Will Be Mobile by Next Year
Most mobile travel research and booking occurs on smartphones rather than tablets
November 10, 2014
2015 will be the tipping point: Half of digital travel researchers will check out flights, hotels and more not only on a desktop or laptop PC but also (or only) via mobile, eMarketer predicts.
Based on eMarketer's latest forecast of digital and mobile travel researching and booking, 128.8 million people in the US will research travel on the internet this year, or 63.0% of internet users. Of that group, 47.4% will do so via mobile. Meanwhile, 106.3 million people (52.0% of internet users) will actually book travel online, including 31.6% of the total who will book travel on their mobile devices.
Most mobile travel research—and booking—will occur on smartphones rather than tablets. More than nine in 10 mobile travel researchers will use smartphones to look up info this year, vs. 81.5% who will use tablets. The gap is much smaller when it comes to booking behaviors.
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In addition, every element of each eMarketer forecast fits within the larger matrix of all its forecasts, with the same assumptions and general framework used to project figures in a wide variety of areas. Regular re-evaluation of each forecast means those assumptions and framework are constantly updated to reflect new market developments and other trends.