Looking at BIGresearch's Simultaneous Media Studies, today's consumer feels a need to stay connected and that need is driving the adoption and usage of new media.
So why do you care as a property owner? Because most apartment buildings hinder, much less help to enable, the connected lifestyle. TiVo has all kinds of great features, and most people that own one don't know how they ever watched TV without it, yet many buildings aren't optimized to let residents make full use of the technology. It's just been in the past few years that buildings have been wired for data services, and most owners still subject themselves to the limitations of partnering with a single service provider. NMHC surveys show that poor service affects retention, so it's important to know both what your residents want and how your communities need to be wired to provide quality services.
TVs are only getting cheaper and better, which means this trend will continue to increase and we need new ways of thinking about living unit design and materials. Flat-panel televisions are good-looking, and essentially serve double duty as entertainment devices and status symbols. As more residents come home from Best Buy with their new 50" LCDs, it's important to be thinking about how living room walls may need to be reinforced at locations near TV outlets to accommodate for hanging of these behemoth beauties. Also, as more people stay home and invite friends over to enjoy a game or a movie, improved sound dampening will become increasingly important in dense communities.
More interesting, though, was the fact that 38% of wireless subcribers say they now consider wireless to be their primary form of communication, and 36% believe that cell phone service is more direct than land line phone service. Granted, this survey was only given online, but considering the fact that there are over 200 million cell phones in the U.S., it certainly means that more and more consumers are cutting the cord and going wireless only.
This trend hits the multifamily industry in a number of different ways. Owners can't cut the expense of wiring for land line phone service yet, but cellular network boosters are increasingly becoming a reasonable investment at most properties. Don't stop there, though - fewer land lines mean changes to access control and security systems, intercoms, and even some TV networks. Do your homework to find equipment that doesn't rely on hardwired phone communications, and you'll find your building will be the one dialed in to your residents' lifestyle.
This melding of technology platforms could have a number of possible implications for property owners. Besides an ever-growing need for bandwidth to accommodate HDTV programs and streaming Internet downloads, this trend could mean that traditional agreements with service providers will get increasingly sticky. Programming distributors now will not only have to provide quality telecom services, but also will have to offer an appealing mix of multi-platform programming deals. Any provider not offering the right mix of both service and programming choices will be at a serious disadvantage, but property owners will have to do a lot more to keep themselves educated about the options their residents want most.
A byproduct of increased competition, service providers that are vying for your residents' business are reaching out to them in many different ways like this to win them over. These stores can be great learning tools for your property staff, too. They're an easy way to keep up on the latest technologies available, and they'll give you a good idea whether your property is offering competitive service or whether you have some catching up to do.