Personal Computers in 33% of US Households

Software Publishers Association Fourth Annual Consumer Study Finds PCs in
More Homes and Being Used More Diversely

55% of PCs Sold in 1994 have CD-ROM Drives

March 14, 1995 (San Diego, CA) -- The Software Publishers Association (SPA)
announced today the results of its fourth annual study of computers in the
home. The use of home personal computers exploded in 1994, with household
penetration of PCs reaching 33% in early 1995, an all-time high.

Buyers are also taking advantage of the latest technology available, as
high powered machines dominated home PC sales in 1994. In fact, a full 57%
of IBM compatibles purchased in 1994 contained 486 chips.

"If the home PC market in 1994 were described in a word, it would be
'more'," said David Tremblay, SPA Research Director. "Far more households
are using PCs now than were a year ago. They are spending more time on
their PCs, and are using more types of application."

Of all the computers purchased for home use in 1994, over 60% of buyers
said that this was their first home PC. Three-quarters of both first-time
and experienced PC purchasers said that at least one person in their
household utilized a computer at work.

Among other key survey findings:

* Multimedia capabilities clearly spurred PC purchases in 1994, as 55% of
all PCs purchased were equipped with CD-ROM drives. Modems are prevalent
but survey results show they often go unused.

* On-ramps to the information superhighway largely remain underutilized.
Despite the fact that 73% of buyers in '94 admitting owning a modem, only
25% presently use an on-line service.

* Use of Microsoft Windows increased dramatically in 1994. But, the
increase will likely taper off going forward. While the survey results
show a dramatic rise in Windows use over the past year (from 53% in 1993
to 79% in 1994), only 31% of present non-Windows users responded that they
would begin using that platform in the coming months.

* Home PC use diversified as respondents described utilizing their
computers at increasing percentages for personal productivity, working out
of home offices, recreation/entertainment, and educational purposes. Home
education use alone increased tremendously -- by 50% over the past year.

* PC users are varying their applications. Word processors, used on 87% of
home PCs, and entertainment software (78%) are the two most common types
of applications on home PCs. But as further evidence of more diverse use
of home PCs, more applications are being used by more households this
year. A total of 5 types of applications are being used on at least 50% of
home PCs, up from only 2 types in 1993. Ten types of applications are used
on at least 1/3 of home PCs, up from only 6 in 1993.

* PC users are supportive of game ratings. A strong majority (70%) of PC
users were supportive of a games rating system. This coincides with a vast
increase in the use of recreational software, with 59% of respondents
saying they utilize their PCs for entertainment. When given a choice of
rating systems, PC users favored one that discloses potentially
objectionable content over a system which gave general age group
recommendations by 55% to 37%.

The 1994 survey results are based on a nationwide random sample telephone
poll conducted by Public Opinion Strategies. More than 500 consumers who
are the primary in-home decision makers about computer software and
hardware purchases were interviewed.

The Software Publishers Association is the principal trade association of
the PC software industry. Its 1,100 members represent the leading
publishers in the business, consumer, and education markets. The SPA has
offices in Washington, DC, and Paris, France. SPA press releases are
available on-line through CompuServe (GO:SPAFORUM).

Software Publishers Association
1730 M St, Northwest, Suite 700, Washington, D.C. 20036
202-452-1600,  Fax: 202-223-8756

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