2022年智能音箱报告（英）-60正式版

SmartspeakersresearchwiththepublicResearchreportDecember2022Photocredit:JamesYarema,Unsplash每日免费获取报告1、每日微信群内分享7+最新重磅报告；2、每日分享当日华尔街日报、金融时报；3、每周分享经济学人4、行研报告均为公开版，权利归原作者所有，起点财经仅分发做内部学习。扫一扫二维码关注公号回复：研究报告加入“起点财经”微信群。。1.ExecutivesummaryResearchapproach•InAutumn2022CommunityResearchconductedresearchwiththepubliconbehalfofOfcomtoexploreusageofandattitudestowardssmartspeakers.Thisresearchconsistedofathree-week100-persononlineforumwithsmartspeakerusers,followedbyfocusgroupswitharoundhalftheforumparticipants.Theresearchalsoincluded15depthinterviewswithnon-usersofsmartspeakers.Theseparticipantsweresentsmartspeakerstotryout,andfollow-upinterviewscapturedtheirexperiences.Acquisition•Mostsmartspeakeruserspurchasedorreceivedtheirspeakerwithrelativelylowexpectationsbeyondcuriosityastowhatitmightoffer.Manyhadlittleawarenessofwhatthespeakercouldbeusedforbeyondafewbasicfunctions,primarilymusicandradio.Speakerswereoftenboughtonspecialofferorwerereceivedasagift;therewaslittlefinancialrisktomostpeopleatthepointofacquisition.•Brandsandspecificvoiceassistantsdidnotplayasignificantpartinpeople’sdecisionmaking,althoughafewchosetobuyabrandthatlinkedwiththeirexistingdevicesoraccountsforconvenience.•Amongnon-users,themainreasonfornothavingasmartspeakerwasthattheysimplydidnotseeacompellingreasontogetone–itfeltanunnecessaryluxury.•Afewalsocitedconcernsaroundprivacyorcostassecondaryreasonsfornothavingaspeaker.Howpeopleareusingsmartspeakers•Participantsintheresearchmainlyusedtheirsmartspeakersforcontentprovision(largelymusic,radio,news,weatherandinformation),althoughmanyalsousedthemfortheirhouseholdmanagementfunctions(suchastimers,alarmsandreminders).Afewusedthemtocontrolsmartdevicesintheirhomes,andahandfulusedthemtocommunicate(forexamplemakingcallsorsendingmessages).••Mostparticipants,havingdiscoverednewfunctionsbeyondjustcontentsincetheyfirstgottheirdevice,foundthattheyusedtheirspeakersmorethantheyhadanticipated,althoughafewfeltthatthenoveltyhadwornoffandtheyusedtheirspeakerlessthantheyusedto.Smartspeakeruserslargelyfellintothreecategories:thoseforwhomitwas‘justaspeaker’,whotendednottouseitformuchbeyondlisteningtoradioandmusic;thoseforwhomitwas‘aspeakerwithaddedfunandfunctions’,whousedavarietyofadditionalfeatures;andthoseforwhomsmartspeakerswere‘acontrolhub’,whodependedontheirspeakersfortheirdailyroutinesandhouseholdmanagement.Thislattergroupincludedpeoplewithmobilitydifficulties3anddisabilities,forwhomsmartspeakersprovidedassistiveandfacilitativetechnologyhelpingthemtoleadmoreindependentlives.Benefitsandfrustrationsofsmartspeakers•Thevastmajorityofparticipantsinthisresearch(includingthosewhowereparticipatingasnon-users)werepositiveabouttheirexperienceofowningandusingasmartspeaker.Theylikedtheconvenienceitbrought,allowingthemtodoarangeofdifferentactivitiesinadditiontolisteningtomusic.Thefactthattheycouldusetheirvoicetocontrolthoseactivitiesmeanttheycoulddothingsquicklyandhands-free.•Peoplealsolikedspeakersforwiderbenefits–forexample,thecompanionshiptheycouldprovide,andthewaysinwhichtheycouldhelppeoplewithphysicalorneurologicaldisabilities.••Mostparticipantsdididentifysomedownsidestosmartspeakers,mostcommonlythattheydidnotalwaysrespondcorrectlytocommands,eitherignoringthemordoingthe‘wrong’thing.•Thiswasfelttobeparticularlythecasebypeoplewithstrongregionalaccents.However,thesedownsidesweregenerallyseentobeminorirritationsthatdidnotfundamentallyimpactonpeople’senjoymentoftheirspeakers.Smartspeakerfeaturesindetail•Mostparticipantsrecalledtheirsmartspeakerasbeingeasytosetupinitially,andnon-userswerepleasantlysurprisedathowstraightforwardtheyfoundthis.Veryfewhadchangedtheirdefaultsettingsontheirspeakerwhensettingitup,andmostsaidtheydidnotknowmuchaboutsettings,buthadnoreasontobeunhappywiththem.•Therewasamixofviewsastotheextentthatpeoplelikedtheirspeakerstopersonaliseortailortheircontent;someappreciatedtheimproveduserexperiencetheyfeltthisgavethem,whileothersfounditunsettlinganddislikedrelinquishingtoomuchcontrol.••Theradiofunctionwasusedbymostoftheresearchparticipants,andpeoplegenerallyfeltthattheylistenedtotheradiomorethantheyhaddonebeforetheyhadasmartspeaker,becauseitwasnowquickerandeasiertodoso.Evenmanyofthenon-usersfoundtheywerelisteningtotheradiomoresincereceivingaspeaker.•Mostwereconfidentthattheycouldaccessalltheradiostationstheywantedto,andthattheirsmartspeakerallowedthemtolistentoawiderrangeofstationsthanhadpreviouslybeenavailabletothemviatheirradiosets.Aroundhalfoftheforumparticipantsaccessednewsviatheirsmartspeaker.Althoughsomeconsumedlessnewsfromothersourcessincegettingasmartspeaker,mostpeoplesawthesmartspeakercontentasanadditiontoratherthanalternativetomorein-depthnewscoverage,usingitforinstantheadlines,butreturningtoTV,printoronlinenewsformoredetailifneeded.4•Participantsweregenerallyconfidentthattheycouldcurrentlytrustthenewstheyreceivedthroughtheirsmartspeakers(inasfarastheycouldtrustanynews).•Thevastmajorityofparticipantsusedthespeakertoaccessinformation.Theyfeltthatspeakerswerebetterplacedtoprovidemoreinconsequentialand/orfact-basedinformation,asopposedtoanythingmoreimportantand/ornuanced.Concernsandrisks•Whenitcametorisks,privacyanddatauseweretheuppermostconcerns(althoughitshouldbenotedthatthiswasinthecontextofalargelyverypositiveattitudetowardssmartspeakers).Theseconcernsrangedfrompeoplefeelinggenerallyuneasyaboutbeinglistenedtoandtargetedformarketingpurposes,tomoredefinedworriesabouthackersanddatasecurity.•••Parentalconcerns,wheretheyexisted(someparentsdidnotfeelthattheyhadcausetoworry),weremorelikelytocentreonthepotentialfortheirchildrentoaccessinappropriatecontentormakeunauthorisedpurchases.Formostparticipants,thebenefitsandconveniencesthesmartspeakersbroughtoutweighedanyconcernsaboutrisks;theywereresignedtolivingwiththeseniggles.Notmanyparticipantsactivelyreducedtherisksofusingsmartspeakers.Thosewhodidtendedtoaltertheirbehaviour(suchasturningoffthespeaker;nothavingprivateconversationsnearit;supervisingchildren’suseofit),ratherthanchangingprivacyandparentalcontrolsettings.•Whenpromptedtolookfor/atthem,someparticipantsfeltthatprivacyandparentalcontrolsettingswerenotprominentenough,andtoohardtochange.52.Backgroundandapproach2.1BackgroundandobjectivesGiventhefast-pacedgrowthintake-upofsmartspeakers,Ofcomwantedtocommissionqualitativeresearchtofurtherunderstandingoftheimpactofsmartspeakersondailylife.Theresearchexploredusers’attitudestowardsthedevices,lookingateaseofuse,privacyconcernsandpotentiallyharmfulexperiences.ThemainresearchareasOfcomwishedtoexplorewere:•Driversforgettingasmartspeaker:•

Whatwastheoriginalreasonparticipantshadforgettingasmartspeakerandhowdidtheychoosetheirspecificdevice?•Impactofsmartspeakersondailylifeandbehaviours:•

Whatimpacthasthedevicehadonparticipants’livesgenerally?Hasitmadesomeactivitieseasier?Howextensiveistheiruseofthedevice?Whattypesofactivitiesdotheyusetheirdeviceforandhowoften?•Awareness/easeofuseofdifferentsmartspeakerfunctions:•

Arecertainactivitieseasiertodothanothersordoparticipantsthinkthesmartspeakerisbettersuitedtocertainactivities?Howeasywasittooriginallysetuptheirsmartspeaker?••Impactofsmartspeakersonradioandnewsconsumption:•

Howhasthedevicechangedparticipants’radiolisteningbehaviours?Howhastheirnewsconsumptionchanged?Concernsandexpectationsinrelationtosmartspeakers:•

Howdoparticipantsexpectationsofsmartspeakersvarybybrand?Dotheyhaveanyprivacyconcernsrelatingtotheirdevice?Doparentshaveconcernsabouttheirchildrenusingthesmartspeaker?Dotheyhaveanyconcernsspecificallyaroundnewsconsumptiononthedevice?2.2ApproachInordertomeettheobjectives,amulti-stagemixed-methodresearchapproachwasdesigned,consistingof:•

Anonlineforumwith100smartspeakerusers,whichincluded:•

1-weekdiarytasktorecordatleastthreedaysofsmartspeakerusage•

2-weekforumincludingpolling,discussionsandindividualtasks,exploringattitudesandbehavioursinrelationtosmartspeakers.•

Onlinefocusgroupswith46forumparticipants:•

Five2-hourgroupsconsistingofplenaryandbreakoutsessionswithin-depthexplorationofspecificresearchareas•

Althoughsomeofthesamecontentwascoveredinallfivegroups,fourhadaparticularfocus:.

Radio.

News6Itisworthnotingthat,incontrasttoquantitativeresearch(whichprovidesabroadunderstandingofthepopulationatlarge),qualitativeresearchprovidesdepthandgranularitytogaininsightintopeople’slives,thinking,andmotivations.Thiscanbeusedasevidencetodevelophypothesesandinferences–aboutsmartspeakersinpeople’slivesinthisproject.Inthereport,weaimtodistinguishbetweenwhatparticipantssaidanddid,andanyinferencesthatwe–asresearchers–drawfromtheevidence.Throughoutthereport,quoteshavebeenincludedtoillustrateparticularviewpoints.Itisimportanttorememberthattheviewsexpresseddonotalwaysrepresenttheviewsofallwhoparticipated.83.Acquisitionandpurchasedecisions3.1DecisionmakingReasonsforpurchasingasmartspeakervariedacrossparticipants,butoneofthemostcommondriversamongstthosewhomadeanactivedecisiontoacquirethedevicewasageneralsenseofcuriosity–peoplewantedtoseewhattheywerelike.Theywantedtoexperiencethedifferentfunctionalitiesandseehowusefuladeviceitmightbe.Somehadboughttheirsmartspeakerduringlockdown,whentheywereboredathomeandlookingfordistraction.Thisoftencoincidedwithanotherkeydriver,aspeakerbeingofferedatareducedpriceoronspecialoffer,whichencouragedpeopletomakethefinaljumpastherewaslittlefinancialrisk.“Duringlockdowntherewasagooddealonforasmartspeaker(£19.99)andasIwasworkingfromhomeIthoughtitwouldbeagoodthingtohavetohelpwithsometaskslikesettingreminders,playingmusicandaskingquestions.”25–34year-oldWoman,Smartspeakeruser(GoogleNest),WestMidlands“I’minterestedintechnologyandthepriceofmyfirstsmartspeakerhadbeengreatlyreduced.Ilikedtheideaofgivinginstructionstothespeakerwhilstdoingsomethingelse.”65+year-oldMan,Smartspeakeruser(GoogleNest),LondonSomeboughttheirdevicepurelytouseasamusicspeaker,notparticularlythinkingabouttheotherfunctionsthatitoffered.“IoriginallywantedsomethingthatIcouldlistentomusicfrombedandnothavetoholdaphone,forexample,orwigglethesettingonaradio,[and]asmartspeakerfelttheperfectfit!Nowit’sjustgreattohaveforsomanyreasons!”16–24year-oldMan,Smartspeakeruser(GoogleNest),ScotlandAroundaquarterofparticipantsintheforumhadnotmadeanactivedecisiontogetasmartspeaker–instead,theyhadreceiveditasagift,orithadcomefreewithanotherpurchase.“Iwasneverreallyinterestedinsmartspeakers.Ireceivedonefreewithapurchaseofaringdoorbell.IamsogladIdid.Ithasdefinitelyenhancedmylife.”35–44year-oldWoman,Smartspeakeruser(Amazon/Alexa),EastAngliaOverall,becauseparticipantsgenerallyhadlittlepriorknowledgeofthesmartspeaker’scapabilitiesanditwasalow(orno)costoutlay,expectationswerelow,bothintermsofwhatthespeakercoulddo,andhowmuchitwouldbeused.Amongstthosewhodidactivelychoosetheirspeaker,somemadetheirchoicebasedontheabilitytolinktootheraccounts(AmazonorApple,forexample)orbecause9theyalreadyhadthespecificvirtualassistant(VAs)1.However,foralotofparticipants,itwasthefactthatthespeakerwasonofferorwasthemostaffordablebrandthatwasthemainreasonfortheirchoice.Manyhadnotheardofotherbrandssojustwentfortheonetheyhadcomeacross,oftenhavingseenfriendsorfamilyusingitpreviously.“lwasn’treallyawareofdifferentbrandsortypesofsmartspeakeratthattime.IjustboughttheEchoDot,thesameaswhatmycousinhad.ItwasagoodpriceandIhaveAmazonPrime.”35–44year-oldWoman,Smartspeakeruser(Amazon/Alexa),WestMidlandsJustoverhalfoftheparticipantsintheforumhadmorethanonesmartspeaker,withnearlyallhavinggottheiradditionalspeakersatalaterpoint(ratherthanallatthesametime).Mosthadgoneforthesamebrandagainfortheiradditionalspeaker(s)becausetheythoughtthiswouldmakeiteasiertolinkthemtogetherand/orbecausetheywerehappywiththeiroriginalspeakerbrand.Thosefewwhohadchosenadifferentbrandgenerallyeitherwantedvarietyorhadnotactuallychosenthebrand(forexample,ithadcomeasagiftora‘freebie’).“Maybeitmakesthemeasiertolinktogether?Ididn’treallythinkanyotherswerebetterormuchdifferent.”16–24year-oldWoman,Smartspeakeruser(Amazon/Alexa),Wales“OnceIhadgotoneAmazonwestucktothatbecauseIthought,wellthat’sgottobeeasierthanaddingsomethingdifferentin,tobeabletomaketheminteractsortofthing.”MultiplespeakersfocusgroupparticipantDriversforparticularbrandchoiceswerefurtherexploredinthefocusgroupswithpeoplewhohadmultiplespeakers.Mostpeopledidnotfeelstronglyabouttheirbrandandhadchosenitforconvenience,forexample,inordertolinkupwiththeirexistingaccounts,orbecausethebrandthatwasonoffer.Therewaslittlesenseofparticularbrandsbeingbetterthanothers–peopleassumedtheyalldidthesamesortofthing,although(amongstthosewithexperienceofmorethanonebrand)therewassomesensethatAmazondevicesweremoreintuitive.“Idon’tthinkIwentwithGooglebecauseIhadanaffinitytoGoogle.Ithinkitwas,just,sawagoodpriceoritcamefree,thoughtlet’sgoandgetthem.I’malwaysdownforagoodbargain.IhaveotherGoogleproducts.I’vegotthedoorbellandthenthecameras,butthatwasn’treallythedecidingfactor.”Multiplespeakersfocusgroupparticipant1Avirtualassistantrespondstovoicecommandslike‘Alexa’,‘HeyGoogle’,‘Siri’or‘HeyPortal’.10WhentheywereaskedabouttheimportanceofVAs,therewasgeneralagreementamongmostparticipantsthatthiswasnotasignificantfactorindecisionmakingorindrivingattitudestowardssmartspeakers.“Thevirtualassistantwouldn’treallymattertomeeither,becauseI’monlyaskingthemtogooglesomethingorsetanalarm,likeitdoesn’tmakeahugedifferencetome.”MultiplespeakersfocusgroupparticipantSomeparticipantsusedVAsonotherdevices,forexampleontheirphonesorsmartwatchesorinthecar,andtherewassomesensethattheyhadstartedtodothismoresincegettingusedtousingtheVAontheirsmartspeaker.SomefeltthattheVAontheirsmartspeaker(s)workedbetterthanVAsonotherdevices.“IprobablyuseitmoreonmyphonethanIeverdid,simplybecauseyou’vegotintothehabitofdoingitwithasmartspeakeranditjustseemstomakesensewhenyou’reawayfromhomeandyou’vegotyourphoneout,justaskinginthesameway.”Multiplespeakersfocusgroupparticipant3.2ReasonsfornotgettingasmartspeakerNon-userswereaskedwhytheyhadnotgotasmartspeaker,andtheextenttowhichthiswasanactivedecisionasopposedtosomethingtheysimplyhadnotgotaroundto.Reasonsfornothavingaspeakervariedhugelyacrossthe15participants,butmostcommonwere:•

Notseeingthepoint:•

Somefeltthatanybenefitsprovidedbyaspeakercouldbederivedfromotherdevices(namelymobilephones),anddidnotunderstandwhatthespeakercouldofferontopofthis.•

Seeingitasaluxuryratherthananecessity:•

Forsome,aspeakerwasseenasa‘nice-to-have’ratherthana‘must-have’device.“Forus,it’sthefactwe’vegotlotsofotherdevicesthatweuse...soIhaven’treallyfelttheneedtoaddasmartspeaker.”25–34year-oldWoman,Non-user,Scotland“IfIcangooglesomethingandfindwhatitis,ortypesomethingin,thenIdon’tseethepointintryingtodoitverbally.”55–64year-oldMan,Non-user,WalesAfewwereconcernedaboutbeinglistenedto(althoughthiswasmoreofasecondaryconcernratherthanamainbarrier)andahandfulwereputoffbytheperceivedcost(boththeinitialoutlayandrunningcosts).11“Youcouldbeinyourlivingroomhavingaprivateconversationaboutsomething,you’renever100%surewho’sthere.”45–54year-oldMan,Non-user,Scotland“Iwasworriedthatitlistenedintoconversations…butIdon’tknowenoughaboutittoknowwhetherthat’sanactiveworryornot.”35–44year-oldWoman,Non-user,SouthwestEnglandAwarenessofthefunctionalityofferedbyspeakerswasoftenlowamongstnon-users,somanywerebasingtheirdecisionmakingonrelativelyvagueperceptions.Somehadcomeacrosssmartspeakersinthehomesoffriendsorfamily,whileothersknewverylittleaboutthem.Thegeneralperceptionwasthattheyplayedmusic,andsomeknewthatitwaspossibletoaskthesmartspeakersforinformation.Onlyonenon-usertalkedaboutbeingabletogetreminders.Formost,itwasthecontentprovidedbythespeakersthatwas‘topofmind’.Afewtalkedaboutthefactthatthespeakerswerehands-freeandportable,whichtheythoughtwouldmakethemeasyandconvenienttouse.Priortoreceivingtheirsmartspeakeraspartoftheresearch,mostnon-userssaidtheywerelookingforwardtotryingitoutandfindingoutwhatitcoulddo.Whileacouplewerenervousaboutsettingitup,andsomeexpressedconcernsaboutprivacy,peoplewere,overall,curiousandexcited.12mostcommonlyusedforlisteningtomusicviastreamingservices,gettingtheweatherforecastandasanalarmorreminder2.Listentomusicviaastreamingservice–likeSpotify,8682797370AppleMusicorDeezerGetweatherreportsAsanalarm,personalschedulereminderSearchforinformationonlineoraskgeneralquestionsListentoliveradioGetnewsreports56GettravelinformationorupdatesListentoapodcast4037342821Tocontrolsmarthomedevices,suchasasmartTV,heatingorlightingTomakeashoppinglistTomakecalls,sendtextsoremailsListentocatchupradio2120PlayaninteractiveaudiogameListentoanaudiobook1413TowatchvideosFigure2:Numberofparticipantsindicatinguseoftheirsmartspeakerforaparticularactivitybytheirhouseholdduringthediaryexercise(Base:100forumparticipants)ChangesinuseovertimeForumparticipantswereaskedhowmuchtheiruseoftheirsmartspeaker(s)hadchangedovertime.Amongstthosewhowereusingitmorethantheyhadexpectedand/ormorethantheyhaduseditinitially(aroundathird),alargeproportionsaidthatitwasbecausetheywerenowusingawiderrangeoffeatures.Forexample,theyhadboughtitforonepurposeandfoundthemselvesusingitforsomethingelse,ortheyhaddiscoveredfunctionsofferedbythespeakerthattheyhadnotinitiallybeenawareof,orconfidentinusing.Severalpeoplementionedthattheywerepleasantlysurprisedathowusefultheyfounditasahands-freehelpinthekitchen–forexample,usingitasatimer,forconvertingmeasurements,orforkeepingthementertained.2Asnotedabove,asaqualitativeresearchstudy,thesampleisnotfullyrepresentativeoftheUKpopulation.Ofcom’sTechnologyTrackerisalarge-scalequantitativetrackingsurveywhichprovidesinformationrelatingtosmartspeakeruseandownership.14“Atthebeginning,itwasjustasmartversionofradio.Greatinthekitchenwhilecookinganddoingchores.Laterfoundoutaboutlotsofotherusefulbenefits–e.g.reminder,alarm,phonecalletc.”25–34year-oldWoman,Smartspeakeruser(GoogleNest),SouthwestEngland“IwouldsayI’verealisedthatthesmartspeakerhasmorefunctionsandcandomorethanIthought.Thishasaddedtomyenjoymentand[inclination]tosearchformoreandseeifitcanfulfilmoreofmyaspirations!”16–24year-oldMan,Smartspeakeruser(GoogleNest),ScotlandThosewhousedtheirdevicelessthantheyhadoriginallyorlessthantheyhadanticipated(aroundaquarter)oftenfeltthatthenoveltyfactorhadsimplywornoff.Asmallhandfulwereusingitlessbecauseofconcernsaboutprivacy.“Ithinkatfirstit’sanoveltyandyou’reaskingquestionsallthetime,especiallymyhusbandwhothoughthispurposeinlifewastocatchitoutandarguewithit!Butitseemstolevelouttowhatweusenow,whichisgeneralquestions,weather,music,gamesetc.”55–64year-oldWoman,Smartspeakeruser(Amazon/Alexa),WestMidlandsSomeparticipantstalkedabouthowbecomingaccustomedtousingvoiceactivationontheirsmartspeaker(s)hadresultedinthemusingvoiceactivationmorewithsmartphones,smartTVsandotherdevices.“AfewyearsbackIwouldn’thavethoughtIwouldhavebeenusingvoice-activatedsystems,becauseIwasvery[much]...juststickwithwhatI’vegot.ButnowIliketotryallthedifferentonesandasmanydevicesaspossible.”65+Man,Smartspeakeruser(GoogleNest),London4.2Thesmartspeaker’sroleinthehouseholdThewayparticipantsperceivedtheirsmartspeakersrangedfromthosewhosawthemverymuchasavoice-activated‘tool’tothosewhohadamuchcloser‘relationship’,asshowinFigure3.Figure3:Spectrumofviewsofsmartspeaker’sroleinthehouseholdForthosewhosawthespeakerasatool,therewasnodifferencebetweenitandothertypesoftechsuchasphonesandtablets,beyondthefactthatitrespondedtoavoicecommandratherthantypingorpressingabutton.Attheotherendofthe15spectrumwerethosewhodescribedtheirspeakerasbeinglikeacompanion,forexamplehelpingpeoplelivingalonetofeellesslonely,orprovidingchildrenwithentertainmentandfun.Somewhereinthemiddlewerethosewhohumanisedthespeaker(seefurtherdetailsbelow),butdidnotfeelaffectionatetowardsit–itwasmoreofaservant(albeit,occasionallybadlybehaved)thanahelpfulfriend.“It’sabitofmachinery.Iwouldn’tthankmyhacksawforgoingthroughabitofwood.Iwouldn’tthankascrewdriverforscrewingitin.”25–34year-oldMan,Smartspeakeruser(GoogleNest),YorkshireandtheHumber“It’slikemyownpersonalassistantthatdoesn’tgetinahuffifIfailtosayplease.”55–64year-oldWoman,Smartspeakeruser(GoogleNest),SouthwestEnglandNotably,inhouseholdsofmorethanoneperson,thespeakerwasoftenconsideredacommunalratherthanapersonaldevice(exceptwherechildrenhadtheminbedrooms).Thisdifferentiatesitfromapersonalsmartphoneortablet.Itwasalsoapparentthatalargeproportionofparticipantstreatedtheirsmartspeakersandothertechdevicesdifferentlyinthattheyoftenanthropomorphisedtheformer.Mostcommonly,whentalkingabouttheirsmartspeakers,theyreferredtothemas‘he’or‘she’.However,therewasalsofurtherevidenceofpeopleattributinghumancharacteristicstotheirsmartspeakers,orrelatingtotheminamorehumanwayby,forexample:•••Askingquestionsinaconversationalmanner(ratherthanissuingcommands);Reading‘intent’or‘personality’intoresponsesandmistakes;Saying‘please’and‘thankyou’whengivingcommands(eitherfromhabitortomodelgoodbehaviourtochildren);••Findingmistakesanderrorsfunny/attributingasenseofhumourtotheirsmartspeakers;Takingcarenotto‘offend’theirsmartspeakersbyrejectingitssuggestions.“Itsometimeshasatendencytorepeatmycommandbacktomeandsaythatitdoesn’trecogniseit...Thisisfrustrating,asitrepeatswhatI’vesaidbacktome.Iknowthatithasheardmycommandcorrectlyandisjustfrankly‘choosing’tobedifficult.”16–24year-oldMan,Smartspeakeruser(Amazon/Alexa),YorkshireandtheHumber4.3TypesofsmartspeakerusersOverthecourseoftheresearch,weidentifiedanumberofdifferenttypesofsmartspeakerusers,basedonhowmuchtheyusedtheirspeaker,whattheyuseditfor,andhowtheyfeltaboutitsroleintheirlife.Whilethereisoftenoverlapbetweenthedifferenttypesofusers–andsomepeoplemovefromonetypetoanotheroverthe16courseoftheirownership–thesebroadlyrepresentthedifferentwaysinwhichthespeakerwasusedbyourresearchparticipants.Therewerethreebroadtypologies,inorderofincreasingfrequencyandrangeofspeakerusage:thoseforwhomitwas‘justaspeaker’;thoseforwhomitwas‘aspeakerwithaddedfunandfunctions’;andthoseforwhomthespeakerwas‘acontrolhub’.TheseareshowninFigure4andthendescribedinturn,andillustratedwithcasestudiesofparticipantsfromtheresearchwhofitthesetypologies.Figure4:Threetypesofsmartspeakeruser‘Justaspeaker’Theseparticipantsusedtheirspeakerasavoice-activatedalternativetoaBluetoothspeaker.Theydidnotreallyusemanyotherfunctionsandhadalimited‘relationship’withtheirspeaker.Theyfeltthattheirspeakerhadalimitedimpactontheirlives,andthattheywouldeasilyreplaceitwithotherdevicesiftheynolongerhadone.Casestudy:DanDanisinhisearly20sandliveswithfriends.HehasasingleAmazonEchospeakerthathegenerallyonlyusesforlisteningtoradioandmusic.HeseesitasanalternativetoaBluetoothspeaker,andthinksitisusefultobeabletocontrolitbyvoicewhenhehashishandsfull,buthasn’tusedmanyotherfeatures.“Thebestthinga