Cheskin Research @ HispanicAd.com: Technology Acceptance.

Cheskin conducted its latest study on the Digital World of the US Hispanic during October and November of 2000, thus having comparative data between the first and fourth quarters of the year. The fourth quarter of the year 2000 wave was a national telephone sample of 2,257 US Hispanics 18 years of age and older who reported data about themselves and their household.

The results of this study unveil trends that are of great importance to the marketing community. Cable penetration, alone, grew from 59% Hispanic household penetration to 64% in the year 2000 alone. Satellite television penetration in Hispanic homes grew from 12% to 20%. Further, cellular/PCS phone ownership, by someone in the household, grew from 42% to 48% in only one year. This eagerness to adopt new technology is interestingly validated by a downturn in pager/beeper ownership by someone in the home. This latter technology experienced a decline from 34% to 31%.

The proliferation of digital technology is becoming increasingly accessible to Hispanic consumers. This proliferation appears to match the metaphor of the candy story. Basically, US Hispanics are enjoying the candy story of technology available to them these days. These are liberating technologies that brake the communication shackles many had to live with for years. Cable and satellite TV growth, at a robust pace, makes sense because more Hispanic relevant programming is being made available in those channels. The growth of wireless communication is also a liberating technology both literally and figuratively. Many US Hispanics had endured, both in their country of origin and to some extent in the US, restrictions in their access to telephony. Inexpensive cellular/PCS technology allows Hispanics to realize the important cultural ideal of community and integration.

Digital tools will serve as the social infrastructure that will help the US Hispanic community better reach cultural and material goals. Marketers who understand these important motivations can still make important inroads in this growing market.

For more information on the 2001 Digital World of the US Hispanic at http://www.cheskin.com/think/thinking.html

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