A closer look at the online habits and behaviours of South-East Asia's young adults, with a particular focus on the social media preferences of people aged 16 to 64 in Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam and Thailand. These were the slides that Kepios's Simon Kemp presented at the Singapore International Foundation's Public Diplomacy in Asia Conference in July 2021.

1. EXPLORING THE ONLINE BEHAVIOURS OF PEOPLE AGED 16 TO 24 IN SOUTH-EAST ASIA
DIGITAL YOUTH IN
SOUTH-EAST ASIA
SIMON KEMP • • PUBLIC DIPLOMACY IN ASIA • JULY 2021

2. DIGITAL2021
THE LATEST INSIGHTS INTO HOW PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD USE
THE INTERNET, SOCIAL MEDIA, MOBILE DEVICES, AND ECOMMERCE
GLOBAL OVERVIEW REPORT

3. 3 @ESKIMON
1. ESSENTIAL GLOBAL DATA HEADLINES AND TRENDS
2. THE MEDIA HABITS OF S.E. ASIA’S YOUNG ADULTS
3. SOCIAL MEDIA USE AMONGST 16 TO 24S IN S.E. ASIA
4. S.E. ASIAN YOUNG ADULTS’ FAVOURITE PLATFORMS
5. IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGIES
TODAY’S SESSION

4. DATAREPORTAL.COM
ALLTHENUMBERSYOUNEED

5. SIMON KEMP
@ESKIMON

6. 6 @ESKIMON

7. 7 @ESKIMON
GLOBAL DIGITAL
OVERVIEW
#1

8. 8 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS (APR 2021)
MORE THAN 60% OF THE WORLD’S TOTAL
POPULATION NOW USES THE INTERNET

9. 9 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS (APR 2021)
4.72 BILLION
THE NUMBER OF INTERNET USERS AROUND THE WORLD IN APRIL 2021

10. 10 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS (JUN 2021), BASED ON DATA PUBLISHED IN THE GLOBAL DIGITAL REPORTS SERIES IN APR 2021 AND JAN 2012
GLOBAL INTERNET PENETRATION HAS
MORE THAN DOUBLED IN THE PAST 10 YEARS
x2

11. 11 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS (APR 2021)
INTERNET USER NUMBERS ARE
STILL INCREASING STEADILY TOO

12. 12 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS (APR 2021)
+7.6%
GROWTH IN GLOBAL INTERNET USERS IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS

13. 13 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS (APR 2021)
+332 MILLION
THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO STARTED USING THE INTERNET IN THE PAST YEAR

14. 14 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS (APR 2021)
HOWEVER, THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE USING
SOCIAL MEDIA IS GROWING EVEN FASTER

15. 15 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS (APR 2021)
+521 MILLION
THE GLOBAL NUMBER OF NEW SOCIAL MEDIA USERS IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS

16. 16 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS (APR 2021)
16½
NEW SOCIAL MEDIA USERS EVERY SECOND

17. 17 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS (APR 2021)
THERE ARE 4.33 BILLION SOCIAL MEDIA
USERS AROUND THE WORLD TODAY

18. 18 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS (APR 2021)
55%
SOCIAL MEDIA USERS vs. GLOBAL POPULATION

19. 19 @ESKIMON
BUT THE IMPRESSIVE HEADLINES
AREN’T LIMITED TO USER NUMBERS

20. 20 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS OF DATA FROM GWI (Q4 2020)
PEOPLE ARE ALSO SPENDING EVER MORE TIME
USING CONNECTED DEVICES AND SERVICES

21. 21 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: GWI (Q4 2020)
THE TYPICAL GLOBAL INTERNET USER NOW
SPENDS ALMOST 7 HOURS PER DAY ONLINE

22. 22 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS (APR 2021), BASED ON DATA FROM GWI (Q4 2020)
12 TRILLION HOURS
THE COMBINED AMOUNT OF TIME THAT PEOPLE WILL SPEND ONLINE IN 2021

23. 23 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS OF DATA FROM GWI (Q4 2020)
SOUTH-EAST ASIANS SPEND MUCH LONGER
ONLINE EACH DAY THAN THE GLOBAL AVERAGE

24. 24
JAN
2021
SOURCE: GWI (Q3 2020). FIGURES REPRESENT THE FINDINGS OF A BROAD SURVEY OF INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 64. SEE GLOBALWEBINDEX.COM FOR MORE DETAILS.
10:56
10:08
10:07
10:06
09:39
09:17
09:01
08:52
08:44
08:08
08:07
07:57
07:52
07:45
07:36
07:27
07:26
07:24
07:20
07:15
07:11
06:54
06:47
06:44
06:39
06:36
06:30
06:26
06:26
06:22
06:15
06:13
06:11
05:46
05:40
05:37
05:37
05:28
05:28
05:26
05:22
05:16
04:25
PHILIPPINES
BRAZIL
COLOMBIA
SOUTH
AFRICA
ARGENTINA
MALAYSIA
MEXICO
INDONESIA
THAILAND
TAIWAN
SINGAPORE
TURKEY
RUSSIA
SAUDI
ARABIA
EGYPT
ISRAEL
ROMANIA
U.A.E.
PORTUGAL
HONG
KONG
U.S.A.
WORLDWIDE
VIETNAM
POLAND
NEW
ZEALAND
INDIA
IRELAND
CANADA
U.K.
ITALY
SWEDEN
AUSTRALIA
SPAIN
AUSTRIA
SWITZERLAND
FRANCE
SOUTH
KOREA
BELGIUM
NETHERLANDS
GERMANY
CHINA
DENMARK
JAPAN
AVERAGE AMOUNT OF TIME (IN HOURS AND MINUTES) THAT INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 64 SPEND USING THE INTERNET EACH DAY ON ANY DEVICE
DAILY TIME SPENT USING THE INTERNET

25. 25 @ESKIMON
BUT WHAT ARE SOUTH-EAST ASIA’S
YOUNG ADULTS DOING ONLINE?

26. 26 @ESKIMON

27. 27 @ESKIMON
THE MEDIA HABITS OF S.E.
ASIA’S YOUNG ADULTS
#2

28. 28
@ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS OF DATA FROM GWI (Q1 2021), BASED ON THE SELF-REPORTED BEHAVIOUR OF INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 24
IN INDONESIA, MALAYSIA, THE PHILIPPINES, SINGAPORE, THAILAND, AND VIETNAM
SOUTH-EAST ASIA’S YOUNG ADULTS SPEND
ABOUT 60% OF THEIR WAKING LIVES ONLINE

29. 29
@ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS OF DATA FROM GWI (Q1 2021), BASED ON THE SELF-REPORTED BEHAVIOUR OF INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 24
IN INDONESIA, MALAYSIA, THE PHILIPPINES, SINGAPORE, THAILAND, AND VIETNAM
10 HOURS PER DAY
AVERAGE TIME SPENT USING THE INTERNET BY SOUTH-EAST ASIANS AGED 16 TO 24

30. 30
@ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS OF DATA FROM GWI (Q1 2021), BASED ON THE SELF-REPORTED BEHAVIOUR OF INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 24
IN INDONESIA, MALAYSIA, THE PHILIPPINES, SINGAPORE, THAILAND, AND VIETNAM
AVERAGE AMOUNT OF TIME EACH
DAY THAT MEN AGED 16 TO 24 IN
SOUTH-EAST ASIA SPEND ONLINE
AVERAGE AMOUNT OF TIME EACH
DAY THAT WOMEN AGED 16 TO 24
IN SOUTH-EAST ASIA SPEND ONLINE
9H 41M
10H 23M
vs
S.E. ASIA’S YOUNG ADULTS ARE ‘ALWAYS ON’

31. 31
@ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS OF DATA FROM GWI (Q1 2021), BASED ON THE SELF-REPORTED BEHAVIOUR OF INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 24
IN INDONESIA, MALAYSIA, THE PHILIPPINES, SINGAPORE, THAILAND, AND VIETNAM
S.E. ASIA’S YOUNG ADULTS SPEND 4 TIMES AS
MUCH TIME ONLINE AS THEY DO WATCHING TV

32. 32
JUN
2021
SOURCE: GWI (Q1 2021). FIGURES REPRESENT THE FINDINGS OF A BROAD SURVEY OF INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 24. SEE GLOBALWEBINDEX.COM FOR MORE DETAILS.
*NOTES: CONSUMPTION OF DIFFERENT MEDIA MAY OCCUR CONCURRENTLY. TELEVISION INCLUDES BROADCAST (LINEAR) TV AND CONTENT DELIVERED VIA STREAMING AND VIDEO-ON-
DEMAND SERVICES. PRESS INCLUDES ONLINE AND PHYSICAL PRINT MEDIA. BROADCAST RADIO DOES NOT INCLUDE INTERNET RADIO.
TIME SPENT LISTENING TO
MUSIC STREAMING SERVICES
TIME SPENT LISTENING
TO BROADCAST RADIO
TIME SPENT LISTENING
TO PODCASTS
TIME SPENT PLAYING VIDEO
GAMES ON A GAMES CONSOLE
TIME SPENT USING THE
INTERNET (ALL DEVICES)
TIME SPENT WATCHING TELEVISION
(BROADCAST AND STREAMING)
TIME SPENT USING
SOCIAL MEDIA
TIME SPENT READING PRESS MEDIA
(ONLINE AND PHYSICAL PRINT)
2H 01M 0H 28M 0H 52M 1H 28M
10H 01M 2H 23M 3H 45M 1H 35M
DAILY TIME SPENT WITH MEDIA: S.E. ASIA YOUNG ADULTS
THE AVERAGE AMOUNT OF TIME* EACH DAY THAT INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 24 IN S.E. ASIA SPEND WITH DIFFERENT KINDS OF MEDIA AND DEVICES

33. 33 @ESKIMON
SOCIAL MEDIA USE BY S.E.
ASIA’S YOUNG ADULTS
#3

34. 34 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: GWI (Q1 2021)
99.6% OF INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 24 IN
S.E. ASIA USE SOCIAL NETWORKS EACH MONTH

35. 35
@ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS OF DATA FROM GWI (Q1 2021), BASED ON THE SELF-REPORTED BEHAVIOUR OF INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 24
IN INDONESIA, MALAYSIA, THE PHILIPPINES, SINGAPORE, THAILAND, AND VIETNAM
SOCIAL MEDIA IS THE TOP ONLINE ACTIVITY
AMONGST SOUTH-EAST ASIA’S YOUNG ADULTS

36. 36
@ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS OF DATA FROM GWI (Q1 2021), BASED ON THE SELF-REPORTED BEHAVIOUR OF INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 24
IN INDONESIA, MALAYSIA, THE PHILIPPINES, SINGAPORE, THAILAND, AND VIETNAM
S.E. ASIAN YOUTH SPEND NEARLY A QUARTER
OF THEIR WAKING HOURS USING SOCIAL MEDIA

37. 37
@ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS OF DATA FROM GWI (Q1 2021), BASED ON THE SELF-REPORTED BEHAVIOUR OF INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 24
IN INDONESIA, MALAYSIA, THE PHILIPPINES, SINGAPORE, THAILAND, AND VIETNAM
BUT YOUNG ADULTS ACROSS S.E.A. USE A WIDE
VARIETY OF SOCIAL PLATFORMS EACH MONTH

38. 38
@ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS OF DATA FROM GWI (Q1 2021). DATA FOR SOUTH-EAST ASIA BASED ON THE SELF-REPORTED BEHAVIOUR OF
INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 24 IN INDONESIA, MALAYSIA, THE PHILIPPINES, SINGAPORE, THAILAND, AND VIETNAM
AVERAGE NUMBER OF SOCIAL MEDIA
PLATFORMS USED PER MONTH: GLOBAL
INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 64
AVERAGE NUMBER OF SOCIAL MEDIA
PLATFORMS USED PER MONTH: INTERNET
USERS AGED 16 TO 24 IN SOUTH-EAST ASIA
6.3 PLATFORMS
7.4 PLATFORMS
vs
SOCIAL PLATFORMS USED PER MONTH

39. 39
JAN
2021
SOURCE: GWI (Q1 2021). FIGURES REPRESENT THE FINDINGS OF A BROAD SURVEY OF INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 24. SEE GLOBALWEBINDEX.COM FOR MORE DETAILS.
7.5
8.0 8.1 8.3
7.0
6.4
INDONESIA MALAYSIA PHILIPPINES SINGAPORE THAILAND VIETNAM
AVERAGE NUMBER OF SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS USED EACH MONTH BY INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 24
AVERAGE NUMBER OF SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS USED

40. 40 @ESKIMON
BUT WHICH SPECIFIC PLATFORMS DO THE
REGION’S YOUNG ADULTS USE THE MOST?

41. 41
JUN
2021
SOURCE: GWI (Q1 2021). FIGURES REPRESENT THE FINDINGS OF A BROAD SURVEY OF INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 24. SEE GLOBALWEBINDEX.COM FOR MORE DETAILS.
*NOTE: THE QUESTION RELATING TO YOUTUBE USE IS ASKED AT A DIFFERENT POINT IN GWI’S SURVEY COMPARED TO THE QUESTIONS RELATING TO USE OF ALL THE OTHER
PLATFORMS INCLUDED ON THIS CHART.
90.1%
87.7%
87.4%
68.2%
64.6%
61.3%
53.8%
49.8%
45.2%
38.1%
29.3%
25.0%
19.5%
15.7%
15.2%
15.0%
14.3%
YOUTUBE*
FACEBOOK
INSTAGRAM
FACEBOOK MESSENGER
TIKTOK
TWITTER
WHATSAPP
TELEGRAM MESSENGER
PINTEREST
LINE
DISCORD
SNAPCHAT
LINKEDIN
REDDIT
SKYPE
ZALO
APPLE IMESSAGE
PERCENTAGE OF INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 24 IN SOUTH-EAST ASIA WHO SAY THEY USED EACH SPECIFIC PLATFORM IN THE PAST 30 DAYS
SOCIAL PLATFORMS USED: YOUNG ADULTS IN S.E. ASIA

42. 42 @ESKIMON
TAKEAWAY: DON’T RELY ON MEDIA HEADLINES
TO INFORM YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY

43. 43 @ESKIMON
BUT THESE FINDINGS ONLY LOOK AT PLATFORM
USAGE; WHAT ABOUT PEOPLE’S PREFERENCES?

44. 44 @ESKIMON
YOUNG S.E. ASIAN ADULTS’
FAVOURITE SOCIAL PLATFORMS
#4

45. 45 @ESKIMON

46. 46
JUN
2021
SOURCE: GWI (Q1 2021). FIGURES REPRESENT THE FINDINGS OF A BROAD SURVEY OF INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 24. SEE GLOBALWEBINDEX.COM FOR MORE DETAILS.
*NOTE: YOUTUBE WAS NOT INCLUDED IN THE ANSWER OPTIONS FOR THIS QUESTION.
25.4%
21.0%
15.2%
11.2%
7.3%
7.1%
2.2%
2.1%
1.9%
1.6%
1.4%
1.1%
FACEBOOK
INSTAGRAM
WHATSAPP
TIKTOK
TWITTER
FACEBOOK MESSENGER
TELEGRAM
PINTEREST
DISCORD
LINE
ZALO
REDDIT
PERCENTAGE OF INTERNET USERS AGED 16 TO 24 IN SOUTH-EAST ASIA WHO SAY THAT EACH PLATFORM IS THEIR “FAVOURITE” SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM
‘FAVOURITE’ PLATFORMS: YOUNG ADULTS IN S.E. ASIA

47. 47 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS OF DATA FROM GWI (JUN 2021)
BUT IF PEOPLE USE 7.4 PLATFORMS, THERE MUST
BE BIG OVERLAPS ACROSS SOCIAL AUDIENCES

48. 48 @ESKIMON
THIS IS PARTICULARLY RELEVANT WHEN WE
LOOK AT YOUNG ADULTS IN SOUTH-EAST ASIA

49. 49
JUN
2021
SOURCE: GWI (Q4 2020). SEE GLOBALWEBINDEX.COM FOR MORE DETAILS. *NOTES: ONLY INCLUDES USERS AGED 16 TO 24 IN INDONESIA, MALAYSIA, THE PHILIPPINES, SINGAPORE,
THAILAND, AND VIETNAM. VALUES REPRESENT THE USERS OF THE PLATFORM IN THE LEFT-HAND COLUMN WHO ALSO USE THE PLATFORM IN THE ROW AT THE TOP OF EACH COLUMN.
PERCENTAGES IN THE “UNIQUE TO PLATFORM” COLUMN REPRESENT USERS WHO DO NOT USE ANY OTHER SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM, INCLUDING PLATFORMS NOT LISTED IN THIS TABLE.
UNIQUE TO
PLATFORM
ALSO USING
FACEBOOK
ALSO USING
YOUTUBE
ALSO USING
INSTAGRAM
ALSO USING
REDDIT
ALSO USING
SNAPCHAT
ALSO USING
TWITTER
ALSO USING
TIKTOK
ALSO USING
PINTEREST
ALSO USING
LINKEDIN
FACEBOOK USERS 0% 100.0% 92.1% 87.1% 15.7% 25.6% 60.1% 57.0% 41.7% 21.1%
YOUTUBE USERS 0.2% 87.7% 100.0% 88.0% 17.4% 24.6% 64.2% 54.0% 45.1% 23.9%
INSTAGRAM USERS 0% 88.9% 93.2% 100.0% 15.2% 26.9% 65.6% 56.2% 45.1% 22.2%
REDDIT USERS 0% 92.1% 94.1% 87.2% 100.0% 40.6% 82.8% 51.8% 63.5% 39.0%
SNAPCHAT USERS 0% 92.0% 92.1% 94.7% 24.9% 100.0% 82.5% 78.6% 63.8% 32.7%
TWITTER USERS 0% 88.5% 93.0% 94.7% 20.8% 33.8% 100.0% 61.2% 53.5% 27.8%
TIKTOK USERS 0% 91.6% 91.3% 88.4% 14.2% 35.2% 66.7% 100.0% 47.8% 21.7%
PINTEREST USERS 0% 88.9% 94.8% 94.2% 23.1% 37.9% 77.4% 63.5% 100.0% 31.3%
LINKEDIN USERS 0% 89.9% 96.3% 92.6% 28.3% 38.7% 80.3% 57.4% 62.6% 100.0%
PERCENTAGE OF S.E. ASIAN USERS AGED 16 TO 24* OF EACH SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM WHO ALSO USE OTHER SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS
SOCIAL AUDIENCE OVERLAPS: YOUNG ADULTS IN S.E.A.

50. 50 @ESKIMON
BUT WHAT DO THESE FINDINGS MEAN
FOR YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGIES?

51. 51 @ESKIMON
REACHING AND ENGAGING
YOUNG ADULTS ON SOCIAL
#5

52. 52 @ESKIMON
KEY TAKEAWAY

53. 53 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS OF DATA FROM GWI (JUN 2021)
YOU CAN REACH ALMOST ALL OF A PLATFORM’S
USERS ON AT LEAST 1 OTHER SOCIAL PLATFORM

54. 54 @ESKIMON
IMPLICATIONS

55. 55 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS (JUN 2021)
YOU DON’T NEED TO USE MULTIPLE PLATFORMS
IN ORDER TO REACH S.E. ASIA’S YOUNG ADULTS

56. 56 @ESKIMON • SOURCE: KEPIOS ANALYSIS (JUN 2021)
TOP TIP: YOU CAN FOCUS YOUR EFFORTS ON 1 OR
2 BIG PLATFORMS AND STILL REACH MOST PEOPLE

57. 57 @ESKIMON
SELECT YOUR SOCIAL PLATFORMS BASED ON THE
OPPORTUNITIES THEY OFFER FOR ENGAGEMENT

58. 58 @ESKIMON
HOW MUCH WILL IT COST TO
AMPLIFY YOUR CONTENT, AND
HOW DOES THIS COMPARE TO
OTHER AVAILABLE OPTIONS?
HOW EASY IS IT FOR PEOPLE
TO ENGAGE WITH YOU AND
YOUR CONTENT, AND WITH
THE BROADER COMMUNITY?
WHERE AND WHEN DO PEOPLE
USE THE PLATFORM? WHAT ARE
THEIR ASSOCIATED MENTAL
AND EMOTIONAL STATES?
WHAT OPTIONS DOES
THE PLATFORM OFFER FOR
SHARING CONTENT AND
REDIRECTING AUDIENCES?
COST TO
PROMOTE
ENGAGEMENT
OPPORTUNITIES
USAGE
CONTEXTS
CONTENT
OPTIONS
SOCIAL PLATFORM SELECTION CONSIDERATIONS

59. 59 @ESKIMON

60. DATAREPORTAL.COM
ALLTHENUMBERSYOUNEED

61. Q&A

62. SIMON KEMP
@ESKIMON
SIMON@KEPIOS.COM
KEPIOS.COM