Mary Meeker’s annual 2015 Internet Trends report is a must read for anyone who wants to understand the impact of technology on the world.  The trends in business, education, government, healthcare, communication, consumer lifestyle and global impact are all mentioned as the online world continues to evolve.  The 2015 edition does not disappoint with its thought provoking insights and ‘wow’ factor.  This year marks 20 years that Mary has been doing this report, from the early days when she began as a Wall Street analyst to today as a Venture Capital guru with Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers (KPCB).

6 Key Highlights:

1) Almost 40% of the Global Population is Online

The impact of this online revolution has been extraordinary, but is still overwhelmingly consumer driven.  Although business is the next biggest driver of online usage – education, healthcare and government have barely tapped into the potential.  As this evolves, it will be a game changer.

2) User Control of Content

We choose what we want to consume in our own time.  We also collaborate, curate, create and share, often from our smartphones.

3) The Rise of Messaging Apps

We communicate individually, in groups and with several of these apps at the same time.

4) Continuing Evolution of Mobile

• Now a viable broadband option
• Vertical viewing (videos are 29% of screen time in US)
• Smartphones and Millennials are inseperable
• Advertising is under served with bad ad formats (how many of us try to stab our screen to close an annoying pop up)

5) Entrepreneurs – Consumer v Enterprise

This really resonated with me.  So many of our resources in the office around building software and creating processes is about trying to stop pain points.  If we changed our thinking to innovation and passion, it could transform the workplace.

6) Our work lives are changing

eBay and Amazon started the online product marketplace movement, but now people have easy access to freelancing work as well as using their cars or homes to supplement income.  It creates flexibility and opportunity.  However, this has also caused a variety of regulatory and tax issues as policy tries to catch up with technology.

The report also contains some standalone slides on the trends in China and India.  Here is the link for the full 2015 Internet Trends report.  No matter what sector you work in, this report is well worth a read.