Social Media Growth and Teen Usage
Social media usage is absolutely exploding across French-speaking regions. In Africa alone, 146.6 million people were using social platforms by 2016, showing just how global this phenomenon has become.
French teenagers are spending more time online each year, with half of young people admitting they think they're addicted to social media. What's really eye-opening is that 88% of 15-24 year olds in France are signed up to at least one social platform, yet only 27% of Facebook friends are actually real-life mates.
Technology adoption in France shows some interesting trends. Smartphone sales dropped by over 5% since 2016 (the first decline since 2007), whilst HD flat screen purchases jumped to 6.5 million units. This suggests people are shifting how they consume digital content.
Quick Fact: Young people check their phones over 50 times daily and 80% use them during family dinners.
Digital security remains a massive concern. With an estimated 7 million cybercrime incidents annually in France, it's shocking that less than 23% of people have security software installed. Even worse, over half never log out of social media properly, and nearly 40% share passwords with friends.
