Canalys has released its latest numbers on smart speaker sales, and the research firm found that Google beat out Amazon for most units sold globally in Q1 2018. Overall, sales in this product category rose 210% to 9 million units based on Canalys’ accounting. Continue Reading
Netflix has launched an interactive audio drama on Google’s smart speakers to promote its reboot of Lost in Space. The audio experience, which was produced in collaboration between Google and Netflix, gives listeners a branching narrative with multiple-choice questions and answers that lets them aid key characters from the program. Continue Reading
The Infinite Dial Canada looked at the uptake of smart speakers in the country, as well as pointing out some unique trends compared with the southern neighbors. In Canada, smart speaker ownership is 8% of the adult population. People aged 35-54 were most likely to own smart speakers at 11%, followed by ages 18-34 at 10%. Continue Reading
Google is joining the music and tech industries’ push into India, with the Google Home and Google Home Mini smart speakers expected to become available in the country, possibly later this month. When they do arrive, they’ll have support for two popular local streaming services. Continue Reading
The Infinite Dial kicked off with a look at ownership trends in technology and media. Most telling, the research from Edison and Triton focused on the growth in smart speakers. Awareness of the device segment was 71% for Amazon Alexa, up from 57% last year, while Google Home awareness rose from 45% in 2017 to 56% in 2018. Considering the recent ad blitzes for the segment, John Rosso joked that those who haven’t heard of them are “probably living in caves and staring at their tablets.” Continue Reading
The Music Business Association (Music Biz) hosted a webinar to share data into smart speaker ownership. Of the more than 3,000 U.S. participants in its September music consumption survey by AudienceNet/LOOP, 10% said they owned an Amazon Echo and 3% owned a Google Home. The results shows a strong correlation between smart speaker ownership and use of the device for music consumption. Continue Reading
Google is expanding its footprint in the smart speaker space with two new products. The Google Home Mini is a puck-shaped option priced at $49. The Google Home Max is a larger version of the original Google Home with a more powerful sound system. Continue Reading
Deezer has added support for the Google Home smart speaker in select markets. The voice controls let you access your Deezer library, and Google Home owners can ask the device directly to play their Flow playlist, a lean-back selection of personalized music choices. Continue Reading
This morning comes an announcement that audio content and marketing company Amplifi Media is joining with mobile app builder jacapps, to develop voice-activated “skills” for radio listening in Amazon Alexa and Google Home devices. The new company is called SonicAi, abbreviated as SAi. Continue Reading
Research firm Morning Consult has released results of a consumer survey which queried over 2,200 adults about how they use virtual assistants. In framing the results of this study, it’s important to understand the scope of “virtual assistant” in this report. Continue Reading
Voice-activated smart home speaker Google Home has started experimenting with what may or may not be an ad format. Owners of the device started hearing unprompted promotions for Disney’s upcoming live action version of Beauty and the Beast. Although Google then said the mentions weren’t intended as ads, will advertising be coming to these devices? Continue Reading
A new report from VoiceLabs examines the burgeoning market of voice-activated personal assistants. With the pushes by so many tech companies – such as Amazon, Google, and Sonos – into this space, what are device owners actually using them for? VoiceLabs’ used its Voice Experience Analytics service to give some answers to that question. Continue Reading