Providing market intelligence for more than 35 years

In The News

Survey: Consumers Prefer Keeping Wearable Device Data from Insurers

According to research firm Parks Associates, the majority of those surveyed indicated that they are not willing to share data collected from wearable devices, even if it meant receiving a discount on their health insurance premiums. In spite of this reluctance, these same consumers were willing to share data for the purpose of troubleshooting the devices themselves.

The results of the survey varied significantly by device. Forty-two percent of digital pedometer owners were willing to share data in order to receive a health insurance discount; for smartwatch owners the total was 35 percent; and for sleep-quality monitor owners it was 26 percent. Nevertheless, a solid majority of device owners was not willing to share data.

Consumers are justified in their concerns about health data privacy. The Los Angeles Times told in July of a security breach in October 2014 where hackers compromised UCLA Health Systems’ computer network, putting 4.5 million patients’ sensitive data at risk. What was troubling about the incident was that it took nearly seven months from the time suspicious activity was discovered in October, to May 5, which is when investigators determined the system was hacked. Additionally troubling was that the data was not even encrypted.

From the article "Survey: Consumers Prefer Keeping Wearable Device Data from Insurers" by Christopher Mohr.

Previously In The News

2024 streaming trends and 2025 outlook: Kent

As 2024 came to an end, the Parks Associates analyst team took a moment to reflect on another transformative year that highlighted the challenges and adaptability of the streaming market. Streaming pl...

Home Entertainment 2025: The Push for Profits

While Netflix sidesteps subscriber growth, the competition remains fixated on scale and sub gains as a means of increasing ad revenue (i.e. marketers), which they now see as a key component in the...

Study: Video Doorbells Have a 71% Service Attach Rate

Parks Associates recently announced a new white paper, Consumer IoT Product Development: Managing Costs, Optimizing Revenues, which provides companies with a business-planning blueprint to evaluate ho...

The Smart Money: Residential Security System Sales Sluggish

After a spike in purchases of safety, security, and technology products during the pandemic, the latest Parks Associates research indicates security system adoption has stabilized at roughly 32% of U....