Internet, innovation, social media in US: a personal view compared to Brazil

Tatiana Aoki
Jul 21, 2017 · 4 min read
Google main building

One week after coming back from California, I think I am more settled down to write about my impressions towards innovation and social media scenario in the United States. Although the relevance of U.S. throughout the world is been menaced by China’s growth, U.S. still has a relevant protagonism in the international scenario, specially when it comes to innovation.

Facebook, Google, Apple, Instagram, not to mention other companies. All of them are from Silicon Valley, California. As a Brazilian, it feels surprising that California concentrates, in just one place, people from all over the world with their intelligence and creativity. It is even more surprising because we have now 3.4 billion people using internet all over the globe, but most of them are using exactly the applications, softwares and hardwares developed in California.

When it comes to social media behaviour, comparing Brazil and U.S., Americans tend to have the same behaviour as Brazilians: KPCB 2017 report affirmed that Americans tend to spend around 5.6 hours/day in digital media, focusing on mobile usage, which is pretty much the same in Brazil.

My daily observations walking around California made me realise that basically everyone was on Facebook, FB Messenger and Instagram. On the subway, walking on the streets, driving, eating, anywhere, everywhere, a lot of people were concentrated on their mobiles, specially in their social media channels. It is just like what happens in Brazil, except for the instant messaging, because we use WhatsApp instead.

Facebook is the protagonist regarding social media: the company holds Instagram and Facebook, ironically both had Brazilians in the founders team. Facebook has Eduardo Saverin as a cofounder; and Michel Krieger is cofounder of Instagram, later sold to Facebook.

Other habit that I got surprised is the strong presence of Amazon. In Brazil, Amazon is still kind of new company, but in the U.S. it seems to dominate every type of retail store. I ordered a few things in Amazon, and the tracking code was indeed in real time, so I could be relaxed that my order would ship in the proper date.

On the other hand, Apple dominates the gadgets in California. It was hard to find a person using other mobile phone than iPhone. And it was rare to see someone not using Mac — although I saw a few people using their HP and Dell laptops, but it was rare. In Brazil, iPhone does not dominate our market share: in 2016, 95% of sold mobile phones were Android, and only 4.5% was iPhones. In comparison, in the same year in U.S., iPhone responds to 40% of the mobile sales, which means, 4 in 10 were iPhones. Pretty impressive, and maybe that statistics is even bigger in California.

Apple dominates in social media and creative companies in Brazil. Picture from Aoki Media’s office, 2015.

United States as a benchmark

In Brazil, U.S. is kind of a benchmark when it comes to habits, behaviors and trends. Which means that it is not surprising that we are doing exactly the same thing when it comes to social media usage. This similar behaviour could indicate how connected we are in the world, and also how few innovative companies, located in Silicon Valley, could change our behaviour for good. Apple developed an iPhone and made us connected everywhere, anytime. Facebook is the hub of all of our connections around the world. Finally, Google helps us to find everything else that we might want to discover.

And since these companies had changed their original business into new technologies and products, what comes next? Somehow I felt how dependant we are of the new technologies and their innovations, which could lead to a more integrated world and also with less identity, privacy and boundaries. There is no limit when we talk about innovation and entrepreneurship.

These aspects — innovation and entrepreneurship — seemed to be a cultural value in America, specially in California. Those values made me a positive surprise about the American people that I got in touch with. They had this vibrant energy and enthusiasm that is not that easy to find here in Brazil, specially after those political scandals since 2013. I could describe them as virtuous, and this characteristic contributed a lot to all of their achievements. When I was in California, I could somehow understand why Silicon Valley is the way it is. And I don’t think this is going to end so soon.

Sources:

http://www.kpcb.com/internet-trends

https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnkoetsier/2017/05/18/surprise-google-reveals-apples-ios-market-share-is-65-to-230-bigger-than-we-thought/#461b151f5890

https://tecnoblog.net/203749/android-ios-market-share-brasil-3t-2016/

http://www.businessinsider.com/apples-iphone-grabbing-us-market-share-2016-12

)
Tatiana Aoki

Written by

Empreendedora de mídias sociais na Aoki Media. Aprendiz de mãe, meditação e japonês. www.aokimedia.com.br

Welcome to a place where words matter. On Medium, smart voices and original ideas take center stage - with no ads in sight. Watch
Follow all the topics you care about, and we’ll deliver the best stories for you to your homepage and inbox. Explore
Get unlimited access to the best stories on Medium — and support writers while you’re at it. Just $5/month. Upgrade