Canada is forecasted to be the 5th highest ranked market in 2015 for the adoption of new media technology. This is not only due to the increased ownership of smartphones, tablets and e-readers, but publishers making content that shines on these devices.
The number of mobile phone internet users in Canada continues to increase, projected to reach 23.6 million in 2018. Smartphone adoption in Canada is among the highest in the world at 62% ,behind Spain (66%) and the UK (64%). If you look at tablet ownership, it has only increased from 9% to 21% over the course of 2013 to 2014.
Publishers are starting to realize that if you are targeting English and French speaking Canadians, the smartphone is the primary goal. Among adults ages 18-34 a staggering 83% downloaded or purchased a digital magazine in 2013. Normally these sorts of downloads occur from the Apple Newsstand, Google Play Magazines, or 3rd party apps such as PressReader.
What type of content do Canadians desire? Well for starters, companies that offer back issues tend to fare better. 45% of Canadians prefer to read only the latest magazine, but 55% said they read back issues too. In terms of Genre, the highest performers currently are Travel, Entertainment, Fashion and Cooking/Decorating.
Canada has a population of 35 million people and although not everyone reads magazines tangibly or digitally, its hard to know how many people are actually doing it. The Print Measurement Bureau said in their Fall Report that 2.9 million Canadians are reading digitally on their smartphones and to a lesser degree tablets, which is an increase of over 57% from last year.
If you are interested in lots of statistics, metrics and deep anylsis of the Candian magazine industry, I would recommend the 2014 Fact Book. It shows how digital magazine content has become even more accessible, available and timely, as well as globally inclusive. From email to display ads, audience engagement to retail, the Fact Book confirms that magazines have an impact wherever, whenever and however readers are consuming content.
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.