Like every year, this reference study, led by Arcep, the CGE and the Agence du Numérique, sheds light on the frequency and diversity of digital uses, on the benefits that people derive from them (in terms of sociability, ability to inform and learn, "power to act") but also on the concerns that arise from the widespread use of digital technology, particularly in the administrative sphere.
This 19th edition of the Barometer is based on a survey conducted "face to face" with a representative sample of the French population aged 12 and over, selected according to the quota method: 2,277 people were interviewed at home (2,052 adults and 207 young people).
The smartphone, at the heart of digital uses
The smartphone is consolidating its position as the reference digital equipment.
The year 2019 will thus see the smartphone equipment rate (77%, +2 points) exceed that of the computer (76%, -2 points). Credoc observes, however, " a slight slowdown in the growth of the smartphone penetration rate since 2016, suggesting that this equipment is entering its maturity phase, characterized by a slower evolution in the coming years. " Computer equipment, on the other hand, is in a period of decline (76% in 2019, or -7 points since 2012).
Référence :
Most used equipment to connect to the internet
While the cell phone or smartphone was already the equipment most used daily by the French in 2017, this trend continues and the gap is even widening with computer use: in 2019, 82% of the French say they use their phone or smartphone daily (+3 points compared to 2017) against 47% for the computer (-5 points). In this logic, the smartphone is the preferred equipment for connecting to the Internet in 2019 (for 51% of the French, +9 points, against 31% for the computer, -7 points).
This preference for smartphones is particularly evident among adults aged 25 to 39, who have seen a 6-point drop in computer equipment over the past year, compared with a 3-point increase in smartphone equipment.
This trend echoes, observes Credoc, " the decline in the perceived usefulness of the computer among the under 40s (-5 points compared to 2017). The dominant position of the smartphone is therefore due, in part, to a relative lack of interest in the computer among French people under 40, who are less mobile, which for some of them translates into a lack of equipment.
Smartphone and computer equipment rate by age
This trend is reinforced by another determining factor in the rate of smartphone and computer ownership: income level. Thus, 79% of high-income earners are multi-equipped with a smartphone and a computer, compared to 51% of low-income earners.
The poorest households saw their rate of multi-equipment increase by an average of two points per year between 2013 and 2018, compared to an average of four points in the total population. This category of the population has seen the biggest increase in the perceived usefulness of the smartphone (+7 points in two years, compared to +2 points on average). It appears that financial capabilities constrain the equipment choices of the French and push them to prioritize the smartphone over the computer.
"In the end, the data seem to indicate, according to Credoc, a substitution effect: on the one hand "technological" with young people increasingly mobile; and "economic" on the other hand, with the notion of financial constraint that comes to limit the choices in digital equipment".
Instant messaging is becoming a part of French people's daily lives
Internet-related mobile uses are growing rapidly. Thus, in 2019, 68% of the population uses a phone to browse the internet (+4 points compared to 2018).
The increase in the use of instant messaging is even clearer: 62% of French people send messages and 51% make phone calls via applications, representing respective increases of +9 points and +11 points in one year.
Proportion of the population that uses a cell phone to ...
"While age remains the primary determinant of instant messaging usage, the excitement surrounding them is shared by all segments of the population, whether it's for texting or calling."
Nearly half of the population (49%) uses applications to send text messages on a daily basis (+8 points); 28% of the individuals surveyed make phone calls every day using instant messaging (+13 points).
"Without yet dethroning SMS, instant messaging is becoming a full-fledged mode of communication, no longer limited to specific times or types of contacts (travel abroad, group communication, ...)"
23% of the French people concerned now use instant messaging more often than SMS (+7 points compared to 2018).
Internet access is stabilizing; practices are becoming more mobile
For the first time, the use of the Internet by the population is slightly decreasing in 2019 (-1 point): 88% of French people aged 12 and over are Internet users.
"Without postulating the beginning of a decline in French connectivity, several signals nevertheless tend to show a stabilization of Internet access": daily use drops by two points (to 78%), while the fixed Internet connection at home remains at the same level as last year (86%).
Internet penetration rate in the population
"Connection modes continue to evolve toward ever more mobility: in 2019, different types of connections are converging."
Credoc observes, in fact, a decline in connection by computer via fixed internet (-1 point compared to 2018 at 74%) and the increase in connection via mobile internet regardless of the medium (57%, +2 points) and the increase in connection via mobile medium - smartphone, tablet (65%, +1 point).
"This trend shows that above all, the French are attached to their connectivity, whatever the interface and mode: the smartphone is then the digital object best suited to this quest for permanent connectivity.
The different ways to connect to the Internet at home
At the same time, between 2017 and 2019, only the perceived usefulness of the smartphone and mobile internet increases in the population, albeit slightly, respectively +2 points and +1 point. Even if their usefulness remains higher, the computer and the fixed internet register decreases (respectively -3 points and -5 points).
Digital technology, between positive impacts and palpable limits
Digital technology has become an integral part of our lives: it is inserted into our lives at a very early age: one out of two Internet users under the age of 20 went online for the first time at the age of 10 or even before.
"The impact of digital is far from neutral: the opportunities associated with this change are as numerous as the concerns associated with it."
The 2018 edition of the Digital Barometer had highlighted people's fears about personal data protection.
"In 2019, despite some localized concerns, particularly about the environment, the French rather appreciate the influence of digital technologies on various aspects of their daily lives.
Having access to the Internet is a condition perceived as increasingly necessary to feel integrated in society. The role of digital technology in the evolution of relations between citizens and their public administrations is perceived as essential by the population.
An ever-increasing use of social networks, which does not prevent a certain mistrust
For three years, 6 out of 10 people have been using social networks. After the pause spotted last year, this practice gains 1 point this year, " perhaps in connection with increased mobilization of certain population groups, especially in the wake of the "Yellow Vests" protest movements that emerged last fall."
Proportion of individuals who have used a social network in the last 12 months
Television and the Internet are the most popular ways to follow and understand the news in 2019. This year, 63% of French people say they get their information online (+5 points compared to 2016). Television and the Internet occupy the first places in the media ranking, whether to follow the news (respectively 48% and 19% of quotes) or to understand it (40% and 22%).
Social networks, on the other hand, are far from being the media of reference in this respect, since only 4% of respondents say that social networks are the media that allow them to better understand the news.
The under 40s, however, tend to abandon traditional media and turn more readily to the Internet, and for the younger generation (12-24) to social networks: 23% of 12-17 year olds say that social networks are the best way to follow the news; 18-24 year olds are the only ones to cite the Internet ahead of television (38% vs. 29%).
Even if the distrust towards social networks is important when it comes to analyzing information, the 18-39 year olds consider that the internet is the media that best allows them to understand current events.
When it comes to choosing the media in which the French have the least confidence, television continues to win over the population (51% cite it as their first or second choice), followed by the written press (42%).
Trust in social networks, on the other hand, is particularly low (8%). This skepticism is also found when it comes to reacting to " surprising information".
"If, whatever the source, half of the population does not react particularly when confronted with surprising information, we observe that when it comes from a social network, the proportion of individuals who say they want to share it immediately is relatively lower than for other sources. Thus, only 9% of respondents say they want to share immediately a surprising information seen on social networks against 14% when it was reported by a traditional media, 16% by an institutional source and 18% by a relative".
Moreover, the French tend to check information from an institutional source less often (25%) than from another, a sign of relative confidence in information from a public institution.
Reactions to surprising information reported by different sources
Who wants to share information?
"Optimistic people are more likely to want to share surprising information. Thus, 18% of individuals who think that their living conditions will improve in the next five years want to share surprising information reported on the radio, on television or in the press, 21% by people close to them and 12% by social networks. The same proportions are found among individuals who believe that the standard of living of all French people has improved over the past ten years.
At the same time, other categories that are less optimistic and less satisfied with their lot also show a certain taste for sharing. For example, if we look at the positioning towards the Yellow Vests movement, the respondents who say they are part of it are also the most likely to share immediate information regardless of the source (with the notable exception of institutional sources): 22% on the radio, television or in the press; 20% through family or close circle; 21% through social networks."
Overall positive impact of digital technology, except for environmental protection
Digital technology is perceived positively in terms of its impact on the private and professional lives of the French.
63% of the population say that the Internet and information technology have a positive impact on their private life, while 71% of employed people report a positive impact on their professional life.
Digital technology increasingly favors sociability: 51% of respondents say they have found old acquaintances thanks to the internet (+11 points compared to 2014), 44% have made new friendships (+17 points) and 15% have met someone in love through this medium (+5 points).
"The corollary of these new forms of digital socialization is that it is becoming more and more crucial in the eyes of French citizens to be connected in order to feel integrated into society (68%, +3 points in one year, +14 points in ten years).
Polarization of French opinions regarding digital change
28% of the population does not feel ready to adopt new digital technologies or services (+5 points compared to 2017), while at the same time, the proportion of individuals ready to embrace digital change immediately increases by 3 points (27%, +3 points).
Age plays a particularly important role in this polarization: 39% of 18-24 year olds feel ready to adopt new digital technologies or services immediately (+15 points), while more than a quarter (26%) of 40-59 year olds do not want to go down this path (+8 points).
This trend is illustrated by the position of citizens in relation to connected objects: while 9% of the population claims to already own a connected speaker, more than two-thirds of French people do not intend to use connected objects in the future, regardless of their possible use: household appliances, health, home automation, security. "This disinterest may be rooted in the population's concern about the use of personal data collected by these devices, despite the adoption of the RGPD."
"This position contrasts with the relative optimism of the French regarding the impact of digital technology on various social issues such as employment and education, despite the decline in these indicators over the past ten years.
For a large majority of French people, digital technology is an opportunity for education and training (70%), employment (70%) and artistic creation (66%).
However, the proportion of our fellow citizens who consider the impact of computers and the Internet on employment as an opportunity is decreasing sharply (-14 points compared to 2008).
"This trend echoes concerns about changes in the labor market."
The negative impact of digital technology on environmental protection is even more pronounced: only 38% of those surveyed in 2019 think that digital technologies represent an opportunity for the environment (-15 points compared to 2008). While young adults do not fear, unlike their elders, that technology can be a threat to employment, they are the ones who have been the most disappointed in ten years about the positive role that digital technology can have on the environment (-19 points for 18-24 year olds and -18 points for 25-39 year olds).
Faced with these growing concerns about the impact of digital technology on the environment, the French seem ready to make efforts to limit their individual impact. Thus, 80% of the French agree with the idea of reducing the impact of their equipment on the environment (e.g. by keeping it longer or buying second-hand or reconditioned equipment) and 69% with the idea of reducing the impact of their uses (e.g. by preferring to download content rather than streaming). Similarly, a majority of the population says they are willing to accept a price premium of around 5% to reduce the power consumption of their computer and to encourage recycling (respectively 70%, +5 points compared to 2009 and 73%, +8 points).
"The French therefore remain positive about the role of digital technology in their lives as individuals and in society as a whole (except for its environmental impact). However, in ten years, Credoc observes, confidence in digital technology as a driver of innovation and social development, although high, has eroded.
The key role of digital technology in the evolution of relations with public administrations
The Internet and digital technologies are also changing the relationship between the public administration and citizens, with the possibility (or even the obligation) to carry out more and more procedures online: among the 434 online services listed on the Service-Public.fr website, there are in particular the services of the tax administration, social assistance, applications for driving licenses, etc.
In order to communicate with the administration and assert their rights, the question arises as to the ability of individuals to use computer and digital tools. The proportion of those who never use these tools or who give up at the slightest difficulty has dropped slightly (16%, compared to 18% last year). 4 adults out of 10 manage on their own or have no particular difficulties. Most often, when faced with a difficulty, people seek help (44%), preferably from someone close to them (35%). These strategies depend mainly on age. Adults aged 18 to 39 do not need help, while individuals aged 70 and over are often excluded from the digital society. Thus, it is mainly adults aged 40 to 69 who ask for help.
Overall, only one adult out of three does not see any obstacle to completing administrative procedures online.
The possible obstacles are varied: difficulty with computers and the Internet (16% of the first responses), complexity of the administrative procedures themselves (11%), lack of site design (10%) or the absence of a contact person who can provide assistance (10%). Among the proposals made to them, the French prefer a place that brings together several public services and other local services (shops, media libraries, social centers, etc.) as the ideal place to help with online administrative procedures: 40% of adults opt for this solution.
For the time being, only a minority of adults surveyed (19%) say that administrative procedures have become simpler in recent years. Conversely, 37% of them consider that they have become more complex.
Perception of the evolution of relations with public administrations in recent years
Digital technology is strongly involved in these changes (86%). On the other hand, we observe that the role of digital seems relatively more important in simplifying than in complicating (93% vs. 82%), especially for populations over 40, who blame digital more often than 18-39 year olds (85% vs. 73%). It is possible that digital change has disrupted the habits established over a lifetime by these populations, implying a profound transformation in the way they interact with government
