Consumers Juggling Home and Mobile Electronics Devices Would Welcome One Source of Technical Help to Manage it All

Consumers who are juggling the use of their home-based and mobile consumer electronics devices would welcome integrated technical support to manage them, especially if they could turn to a single company for help, according to a study from Accenture.

Accenture conducted the survey to determine if consumers who are faced with a proliferation of new devices -- both personal and business -- perceive the need for integrated technology support across multiple digital devices. The 21-country survey focused on consumers who own both computers and mobile phones or smartphones.

A clear majority (63 percent) of the “super-users” surveyed said they would like to have one company provide technical support for most or all of their home and mobile consumer electronics devices, regardless of the specific communications services they use, which range from fixed landline to wireless, broadband, cable and satellite services. A “super-user” is defined as someone who owns and uses 14 or more consumer electronics devices.

When asked about the kinds of technical issues for which they would want support, all of the respondents focused primarily on computer-related issues, and:

-- sixty-eight percent indicated they would want support to reduce the likelihood of serious computer problems that could put data at risk or cost a lot of money to fix;

-- sixty-seven percent want increased security from virus and malware attacks that could put data at risk;

-- sixty-two percent desire improved computer speed for tasks such as browsing the Internet; and,

-- fifty-seven percent want help obtaining the latest software or security patches.

Respondents want various support options from one source

All of the consumers interviewed expressed interest in a wide variety of support options. Regarding remote support:

-- more than one-third (36 percent) indicated their top choice would be to work with someone remotely (such as chatting online, speaking on the phone, or communicating via email with a technician) and;

-- one-third (33 percent) prefer that technicians remotely access their computer at night or during other “down time.”

When asked to rank companies that would be the best fit to provide technical support for desktop or laptop computers, more than one-third (34 percent) of all respondents chose a company they pay for service on a monthly basis, such as a communications provider, cable or satellite company, and, more than half of the “super-users” (52 percent) agreed. More than half (58 percent) of smartphone consumers said they would look to mobile phone or smartphone providers as a likely source of technical support for these devices.

More information on service and support can be found at www.SupportIndustry.com.