sonzia dilligence deck

– 1 –Sonzia Market Research ©2015 Sonzia www.Sonzia.com

Assessing the Market Opportunity for Sonzia in Schools and Clinics

An Executive Briefing


• Executive Summary 3

• Value Proposition: 10– K-12

– Content

– Purchasing Mechanism

– Affordability

• K-12 in Detail: 22

• Seniors 34

Contents


When introduced to the Sonzia Touch Easel, many facilities were enthusiastic. There is a lot of interest in accessibility, particularly in 1:1 districts or elderly care facilities supported by connected loved ones.

The Touch Easel provides a durable, affordable, connected platform, through which Sonzia can sell content

Successfully entrenching the Copia platform on the basis of unique content would provide a durable competitive barrier, but could also prove challenging to achieve.

• “We are seeing 40,000 children left behind as the whole district moved to iPads.”

—Special Educator, LAUSD

• “We would love to have something our clients can use to go online, I have never heard of a tablet that people with Parkinson’s could use”

—Chief Nurse, Assisted Living, MA

• “There are ever more residents looking to get online. Most of them bring their own devices, but I don’t know of anyone that has a special device to use with arthritis or poor vision.” —Administrator, Assisted Living, CT

Source: Stax interviews & analysis, Aug/Sept. 2013.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY


Sonzia touch technology can be scaled in size to fit an entire room. This allows us to create interactive, fully immersive environments to complement therapy on personal devices.

Scaling Up – The Sonzia Immersive Therapy Environment

Interactive Walls

Built for Sensory

Restriction

Scenes can cover one

wall or many

Can be used for habituation therapy with

social situations

“We would be very interested in using an immersive environment to teach our kids to be more comfortable in a restaurant, airplane, or even crossing the street. Having a safe space to teach about the outside world is something we have thought of but could never do.”– Director of Operatiions, Autism Foundation

Supports games

and music !

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY


Within the addressable disabilities we have focused on two age groups; those between the ages of 4 and 19 designated K-12 within this presentation and Seniors.

This work represents the first phase of Sonzia’s evaluation of our product’s positioning and value proposition across several end markets

Education Organizations

K-12

• Foundations

• Churches

• Gov’t Agencies

• Associations

• Public

• Charter

• Private

• Catholic/parochial

Disability Care Elderly Care

Clinical

• Nursing Homes

• Assisted Living

• Hospice

• Home Care

• DDS Clinics

• Foundations

• Autism Care

• VA

Ancillary markets such as conference rooms, advertising, art & museums, as well as the individual consumer markets have been considered by management as out of scope at this stage of Sonzia’s growth.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY


Sonzia has directed research to serve the strategic purpose of comparing the elderly care and developmental disability markets to other sales channels for Sonzia that we will later assess. We’ve also sought to generate tactical insights into how Sonzia can effectively serve these markets

Sonzia sought field level insight into the market opportunity by reaching out to competitors and potential clients.

Who do we target

• What segments of the elderly care market appears most likely to adopt a Sonzia-like solution?

• Where should Sonzia focus its sales efforts to achieve the best return on its sales?• How can Sonzia quickly assess the sales potential of a district to determine and

prioritize high-potential leads?

What do we sell

• What features and capabilities should Sonzia highlight to create a product that is easy for institutions to adopt and generates sustainable loyalty?

• What capabilities matter most to each of the various stakeholders involved in a facility providing digital content and connectivity?

How do we go to market?

• How does Sonzia differentiate its offering within the market?• How should Sonzia structure pricing to align with its value proposition to each

market segment?• What can Sonzia do to empower facilities to purchase its solution?

Key Questions

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY


Outlook AssessmentMarket Opportunity

• There is significant opportunity for Sonzia in the K-12 public market in places where digital education is already deployed or soon to be deployed and is not accessible to all.

• There is a fast growing demand for technology from the elderly. 30% of 80-year-olds are online and they tend to be wealthier and cluster in assisted living facilities as opposed to nursing homes.

• Disability clinics, including schools for the blind, deaf, autism, and developmental disabilities are a natural fit for Sonzia products. Schools for the deaf are a particularly useful early target as they focus on visual tools.

Readiness for Adoption

• Touch Tables are an unknown product category and driving hardware adoption will be the first challenge Sonzia faces.

• The speed with which tablet and computers have been adopted combined with Sonzia’s ability to leverage a familiar Android environment makes this process some

Ease of Market Entry

• Early feedback from pilots and partners has been enthusiastic. Private clinical markets and assisted living facilities are strong first targets, with public K-12 and nursing homes being harder, and lower priority for Sonzia.

• Sales cycles can be long, and implementation of an institution wide software back end, while very profitable for Sonzia, will have probably be the most difficult part of the process. Hardware, however, is plug and play.

• Hardware sales will likely be easier than offering a software bundle, but the latter would be much more profitable.

Timing for Market Entry

• No truly similar hardware solutions exist for people with disabilities, and Sonzia should enter both the K-12 and elderly markets now. The latter is particularly poised to grow as those more familiar with technology are getting older and will find their inability to use it much more frustrating than today’s 80+ cohort.

• For K-12 Sonzia should focus on schools moving to digital education with a 1:1 device program. These schools should be approached through their accessibility departments and presented with a Sonzia solution.

Sonzia’s ability to make digital hardware accessible to those with poor vision, motor skills, or intellectual disabilities is perceived as valuable for institutions looking to highlight a digital component, but these institutions are often working within very lean budget constraints.

Sonzia’s perspective on the market is that there is sufficient opportunity to pursue, but recognizes that adoption may be slow

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

StrongWeak

StrongWeak

StrongWeak

StrongWeak


Sonzia’s desire to be the main platform for delivery of digital content to those differently abled has lead it to a pricing strategy that derives revenue from content, while providing low cost hardware solutions to lower the barrier to entry for institutions large and small.

Sonzia positions its offering and prices the solution to help lower the barrier to adoption, at least for hardware…

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Many schools and clinics have faced declining budgets. While many are confident there will be a turning point soon, low cost solutions offer a strategic advantage in a world of heavily inflated medical hardware prices.

“We didn’t know how Obamacare would affect us and tightened the belt. This isn’t going to last forever and we may start spending again soon” – Operations Administrator, Hospital, AZ

Push hardware margins down to reach low prices and encourage adoption.

There is a strong track record of high value, high cost content in the clinical community.

Use pilot programs to promote hardware and software, push high margin software sales into existing clients as hard a new hardware sales for new potential clients.

Most districts we approached lacked a fully formed digital education strategy. Furthermore, many that did consider their strategy complete found unexpected issues in implementation that could be worse than the original problem.

Focus on Plug and Play installation & operation.

Offer a flat fee for back end implementation. This will cover networking of all devices, including Immersive Room solutions. This will make scaling up much less expensive and incentivize getting on the Sonzia OS.

The market is hungry for a fully turnkey hardware software solution.

Tablets and other solutions have found networking to be an issue, with the internet being used openly during class for sometime nefarious ends.

Sonzia is developing an Android based OS to run an app store and offer full feature remote app management.

These tools to open and close any app remotely or control internet access are considered very valuable, particularly with regards to K-12.

Topic Challenge Impact on Sonzia

Budget

Product Differentiation

Digital Strategy

Suggested Response

Low High

Low High

Low High


Overall, Sonzia’s growth opportunities are tied to institutional funding mechanisms, particularly federal funds and private grants

Low HighLow HighLow HighOutlook for Sonzia: Low High

Sonzia should focus primarily on private markets with large budgets to show the effectiveness of the solution. Our research shows cost conscious Directors of Nursing or Principals are much more risk averse and strongly prefer solutions with significant track records.

Nursing Homes

Budgets

• Medicare / Medicaid supported

• “Our budgets are very tight, we focus on medical expenditures”-- Director of Nursing, CT

Interest

• Population average age: 80+

• “We would rather spend the money on a recumbent bicycle”-- Director of Nursing, MA

Budgets

Assisted Living

Interest

• Larger budgets and individual support

• Private payor funding• Private insurance

• More technology savvy population

• Higher education• Family more engaged

through technology

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The outlook for Sonzia is tied to the availability of funds for technology. The best early growth strategy would be to target private payor / private insurance supported institutions, such as by targeting assisted living facilities, but not nursing homes.


Public schools represent one of the largest markets for Sonzia. However, it is also one of the most expensive markets to reach both in terms of time and resources.

The Public School System – A late priority target

• One of the first marketing targets of Sonzia should be public schools for the deaf, along with the districts that house them. These schools were very early adopters of smart boards and have an inherent interest in Sonzia’s visually engrossing solutions.

Key Decision Impact

• Sonzia needs a strategy that fits into existing expenditure models. This means a flat fee for implementation plus a yearly maintenance fee that would cover the IT costs of running the service.

• Sonzia should focus on selling hardware directly to schools through the special education departments and the back end analytics to the district as they host the servers and will track and disperse the data.

• Sonzia will have to expend significant resources in relaying the value proposition through to multiple stakeholders, each at different levels and with different interests.

Funding Model2

District Funding3

Deaf & Blind4

Decision Making1

• Public schools receive a mix of federal funds and grant funds. Technology expenditure can come from either. Federal funds typically have a purchasing system such as eRate for new hardware and yearly funds for IT.

• Districts are often in charge of the IT budget for multiple schools. They may be more difficult to reach but have a much wider power, but may only look at cross district functionality.

• Ever state is mandated to have at least one school for the deaf and one for the blind. Schools for the deaf put a particularly strong emphasis on visual learning.

• Decision making is a complex, multi-tiered process. This means that decision making can be very slow and issues may emerge at any level of the process.

Commentary

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY


Proof of efficacy is the first barrier to entry, with networking / implementation being the second

While there are many steps between a pilot study and a classroom full of Touch Easel, the first are the proving the efficacy of the hardware followed by implementation of an institution wide software back end.

Sonzia will need to show the need for hardware first, and use this low margin activity and content to incentivize clients to switch to a high margin Sonzia back end solution for all relevant devices.

Efficacy

Budget

IT Infrastructure

Existing Devices

Inertia/Politics

Primary barrier to adoption

Secondary barriers to adoption

Source: Stax interviews & analysis, Aug/Sept. 2013.

“We pride ourselves on being up on the latest solutions but we have not heard of Sonzia.” —Educator, MA

Connectivity/Access Training Staff

Implementation

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY


Sonzia’s revenue from Hardware sales would rise, then fall as both cost and prices per unit went down, keeping margins constant. The most promising revenue stream comes from software with 3 basic assumptions – basic (1app), 3 apps, and 9 apps, all with clinical level back ends, and the cost associated with it. At an average of $1,000/year per device per app, revenue would very quickly grow to make Sonzia a very significant player.

Revenue is driven by hardware adoption, but comes from software sales

Y1 Y2 Y3 Y40.00%

0.50%

1.00%

1.50%

Share of Market1

Y1 Y2 Y3 Y40

100002000030000

Units in the Field2

$2,500 $1,750 $1,250 $1,000 0

5

10

15

Hardware Revenue ($M) 3

Basic 3 apps 9 apps 21 apps0

50001000015000

Software Revenue per device4

1: Conservative assumption with funded sales force2: Based on 1.7M residential geriatric care beds in US3: Revenue of new units that year, with depreciation, assuming each sale is good for 5 years4: Assumes 1/3 in-house software, and 2/3 partners with 15% Sonzia commission

Y1 Y2 Y3 Y40

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

Software Revenue per device4

Software revenue will drive Sonzia as we scale. With estimates exceeding $100M per year with some software penetration and 1% of the TAM

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY


Advantage Weakness Similarity Price Competitive Intensity

Multi OS support Very high price, no focus on any

market

supports multitouch

swiveling tables$8,000

Microsoft OSBuilt for

cooperationFew supported

appsCooperative capabilties $5,000

Versatile furnitureAdjustable height

Built for computers

Adjustable angle scholastic focus $500

Standard solution for educational

surfacesNot interactive

standard scholastic furniture

$100-450

Focused on Disabilities ~$1000

Sonzia’s price point for tables is so far under the average costs of the existing interactive table market that it is price competitive with furniture itself.

No true turnkey competitor exist but various players built comparable software and hardware, though interoperability can be an issue

Low High

Low High

Low High

Low High

Without any clear solutions designed either for disabilities or education by competitors, Sonzia is pursuing a white space strategy without fear of immediate followers into the space.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY


Sonzia has developed a product that caters to the needs of those with the disabilities while also offering software specifically designed for developmental therapy for each disability type.

Addressable Disabilities

Parkinson’s

Alzheimer’s

Hearing Impaired

Autism

Brain injuries

Stroke

Multiple Sclerosis

ALS

Down SyndromeDevelopmental Delays

Mental Retardation

Auditory ProcessingADD

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY


Value Proposition


Sonzia makes the world accessible to people of all abilities, delivering high margin content in the process

K-12 Content

PurchasingMechanism

Affordability

VALUE PROPOSITION


Children with hearing impairments, vision impairments, cognitive impairments and ambulatory difficulties are more often enrolled in public schools than those without these types of disabilities. However, children with disabilities also enroll in for-profit and nonprofit private schools at a similar rate as those without disabilities.

Over 95% of disabled K-12 students are enrolled in public or private schools

Learning Speech Autism Intellectual Emotional Hearing Visual Orthopedic

VALUE PROPOSITION: K-12


Touch Easel already delivers everything Android has to offer…

App Designed For How It WorksSpeak It! SLD,

Speech/Language Disorders, Nonverbal Autistic

Enter the text you want to say and press “Speak It!”

Autism Express Autism, Developmental Delays

Encourages people with autism to recognize and express emotions

TalkBack Visually impaired Helps the user navigate the touchscreen using audio feedback

SoundFocus Hearing Impaired Figures out which sound frequencies you do not hear well and improves the audio output to suit individual hearing needs

Model Me Going Places

Autism, Intellectual Disabilities, Developmental Delay

Visual teaching tool for navigating challenging locations in the community. Each location contains a photo slide show of children modeling appropriate behavior

Behavioral Tracker Pro

Autism Behavioral data collection app that allows behavioral therapists, teachers or parents to track and graph behaviors

Many therapeutic applications already exist on the Play Store and can be used with TE

VALUE PROPOSITION: CONTENT


Beyond the existing applications, Sonzia is forming partnerships with clinicians and developers to create unique content. Clinical efficacy is the core of the Sonzia model and comes with a focus on evidence based assessments of all partner apps.

Only partnerships can truly unlock the technology's potential

Research & Practice

• Sonzia has created custom content for those with developmental disabilities designed in partnership with clinicians.

• Elias Arts is providing music and sound compatible with the needs of those with sensory issues.

• Many other partnerships are in the works, Sonzia will announce relationships as they are formalized.

Touch Easel is being deployed in the clinical research facility for Autism at Purdue. The first goal will be to test their in house app: SPEAKall!. They are committed to exploring the potential of the device in both clinical and research settings.

VALUE PROPOSITION: CONTENT


Clinics purchase software on a per user basis. In order to realize high margin clinical software, Sonzia needs to develop an “App Store” to provide a way for facilities to purchase software licenses for individuals per year.

Software purchasing is largely on a per user basis

“It is harder for me to install a free piece of software on our system than purchase a white board .” – Teacher, MA

Partners

• Third party developers interested in disabilities

• Advantageous revenue model– Current market is a race to the

bottom with focus on low cost apps

– Sonzia platform is institutionally driven and can charge more

– Ability to target customers most at need with dedicated apps

• Several developers

Sonzia

• Android based OS to leverage content store– Lower TCO based on longevity

of hardware

– Sonzia Store allows per user purchasing

• Remote App management allows instructors to control user experience fully

• Back end to support data tracking, enabling high margin analytics revenue stream

Customer

• Software costs can scale to reflect limited budgets of client clinics– Per user pricing means no

overspending on unused software

– Remote app management allows teachers to fully control the educational experience of students of any ability

– Back end tracking allows data driven analytics to inform clinicians and instructors on progress

VALUE PROPOSITION: BACK END


Sonzia offers the world’s most affordable large scale, high accuracy touch technology. This allows up to build devices for a fraction of what even tech giants like Google pay for large scale screens.

The core of Sonzia hardware is the touch interface

Medium Scale

“Touch Tables” or tabletop computing has been around for decades as a concept. Today several companies produce them, all at very high costs.

• “The most expensive part of the touch table are the capacitive screens. The glass alone can be hundreds of dollars because it has to be incredibly thin”

—Engineer, Competitor

• “The idea of using a large scale touch screen has been a pipe dream for us for some time. For our research, we had to use a group of iPads next to each other due to cost.”

—Professor, US University

Large Scale

Sonzia technology can be scaled to fit an entire room. It can create a truly immersive environment for a fraction of the cost up to now, enabling clinical use for the first time.

• “We have been looking for a way to transform a wall into a video wall, never mind making it interactive. This could open up a whole new world for communication, therapy, and counseling.” —Director of Autism Center, US University

• “The biggest barrier is getting curriculum people to join in. We can all agree that they want some type of system, but everyone has an opinion on how it should be implemented and that leads to further delays.” —Director of Instructional Tech., FL

VALUE PROPOSITION: COST


One of the main issues with technology purchasing is the repeated costs. For most tablets and phones, the life expectancy of computer such as laptops or towers is more than double that of tablets or phones. Bringing that lifespan up is a priority for administrators.

Built to be long lasting…

Total Cost of Ownership

• Purchasing decisions are made on the long term by a team estimating the total cost of ownership over time

• Homogeneity and longevity are two of the most important criteria for institutional decision makers

“We look at the cost over time. One of the most expensive aspects of electronics in school is the cost of repeatedly replacing devices.” – Administrator, High School, CA

Sonzia is designing tools that are easy to maintain, upgrade, and even replace. Parts are standard, spares easy to come by, and servicing can sometimes even be done by the client.

VALUE PROPOSITION: COST


K-12


There are millions of school aged children with disabilities in the US…


Students with special education need to improve their behavior, communication and relationships with their environment. The development of customizable and adaptable applications tailored to them provides many benefits as it helps mold the learning process to different cognitive, sensorial or mobility impairments.

Each have different needs and must be understood as such

• 67,529,839 students ages 6 to 21 in the United States in Fall 2012

• 5,693,441 (8.4 percent) received special services under IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act)

Specific Learning Disability - 2,268,098 (39.8 percent)Speech or Language Impairment - 1,032,729 (18.1 percent)Autism - 440,592 (7.7 percent)Intellectual Disabilities - 415,697 (7.3 percent) Emotional Disturbance - 359,389 (6.3 percent) Multiple Disabilities - 124,722 (2.2 percent) Developmental Delay - 122,901 (2.1 percent)Hearing Impairments - 68,069 (1.2 percent) Orthopedic Impairments - 52,052 (0.9 percent) Visual Impairments - 24,987 (0.4 percent)Traumatic Brain Injury - 25,020 (0.4 percent) Deaf-blindness - 1,281 (0.02 percent) Other - 757,904(13.3 percent)

5.1 million children (8.8% or 1 in 11 of this age group 4-17 years) have a current diagnosis of ADHD: Tablets allow seniors to adjust text size, backlighting, and contrast to allow them to see

text better while reading or connecting socially with family and friends. Using tablet technology can eliminate or reduce need for challenging visual assistive technology

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 American Community Survey.


Learning

DISABILITIES

Speech Autism Intellectual Emotional Hearing Visual Orthopedic

There are over 2.6 million children in America with a learning disability. Learning disabilities present educational challenges ranging from struggling to read out loud or understand the material to difficulty writing papers, essays, or using writing tools at all.

Specific Learning Disability

Definition

According to IDEA, SLD is “a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, which disorder may manifest itself in the imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or do mathematical calculations. Such term includes such conditions as perceptual disabilities, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia. Such term does not include a learning problem that is primarily the result of visual, hearing, or motor disabilities, of mental retardation*, of emotional disturbance, or of environmental, cultural, or economic disadvantage.” (20 U.S.C. § 1401 (30))

Affects 2.6 MILLIONLarger text, contrast settings and the availability of a touch screen to use as a writing tool can aid students in reading and writing.


Speech and language impairments present major obstacles to education. These types of disabilities primarily impact communication, preventing students from giving or understanding presentations, or participating in class discussions.

Speech or Language Impairment


Definition

“a communication disorder such as stuttering, impaired articulation, a language impairment (entail difficulty comprehending words properly, expressing oneself and listening to others) or a voice impairment that adversely affects a child’s educational performance.”

Affects 1.0 MILLION Text-to-speech applications can help students with speech or language impairments express themselves as intended.


Autism presents significant educational challenges ranging from social difficulty and sensory issues to severe linguistic disabilities and outwardly disruptive behavior. Though we do not clearly understand why, Autism rates have been rising exponentially.

Autism


Definition

“a developmental disability significantly affecting verbal and nonverbal communication and social interaction, generally evident before age three, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance. Other characteristics often associated with autism are engaging in repetitive activities and stereotyped movements, resistance to environmental change or change in daily routines, and unusual responses to sensory experiences. The term autism does not apply if the child’s educational performance is adversely affected primarily because the child has an emotional disturbance, as defined in [IDEA].”

Affects 440 THOUSAND

A multi-user touch screen would enable children to play together, fostering collaborative play and an inclusive environment. Students with autism can practice good behaviors in a social environment. The Sonzia Sensory Integrative Sound Library uses only clinically-approved music and sound effects.


Intellectual disabilities offer some of the most challenging educational issues. Individuals often has trouble understanding new concepts and the relationship between concepts they already know. They often have a limited vocabulary, trouble communicating, and difficulty accomplishing complex tasks.

Intellectual Disabilities


Definition

“significantly subaverage general intellectual functioning, existing concurrently [at the same time] with deficits in adaptive behavior and manifested during the developmental period, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance.”

Inappropriate behaviors are often found in those with intellectual disabilities. A virtual environment would provide a safe space to practice behaviors and reinforce those that are most appropriate. Affects 416 THOUSAND


Emotional disturbances can be disruptive to a classroom. Affective disorders can prevent a student from developing healthy relationships with peers and teachers. This in turn can make learning very difficult, and can make the individual quite distraught.

Emotional Disturbance


Definition

A condition exhibiting one or more of the following characteristics over a long period of time and to a marked degree that adversely affects a child’s educational performance:(A) An inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors.(B) An inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers.(C) Inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances.(D) A general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression.(E) A tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems.

An immersive relaxation environment coupled with emotional reinforcement should be able to help calm the moments of instability and bring back the person in the societal fold.Affects 360 THOUSAND


Hearing impairment obviously affects one’s ability to be in a regular classroom. For many without early language, grammar, spelling, and vocabulary are permanently affected.

Hearing Impairment


Definition“an impairment in hearing, whether permanent or fluctuating, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance but is not included under the definition of ‘deafness.'”

Affects 68 THOUSAND

Text-to-speech applications can be installed to help hearing impaired students understand more content. The large and visually appealing Touch Easel can help hearing impaired students read, write, and learn.


Students with visual impairment face difficulty in conceptualizing objects, reading, operating calculators and word processing software, and safely moving around the classroom.

Visual Impairment


Affects 25 THOUSAND

Definition“an impairment in vision that, even with correction, adversely affects a child’s educational performance. The term includes both partial sight and blindness.”

Larger text and a visually appealing and immersive interface would enable students with visual impairments to use a type of technology from which they would otherwise be excluded.


Students with orthopedic impairments face difficulties communicating effectively and engaging physically with their surroundings.

Orthopedic Impairment


Definition“a severe orthopedic impairment that adversely affects a child’s educational performance. Includes impairments caused by a congenital anomaly [birth defects], impairments caused by disease (e.g., poliomyelitis, bone tuberculosis), and impairments from other causes (e.g., cerebral palsy, amputations, and fractures or burns that cause contractures).”

Affects 52 THOUSAND The Touch Easel has swivel technology that enables it to be used both as a horizontal surface or a vertical immersive canvas. It is extremely sturdy and wheelchair-accessible.


Seniors


Fully 79% of older adults who use the internet agree (47% strongly) with the statement that “people without internet access are at a real disadvantage because of all the information they might be missing.

Half of non-users (48%) agree that people lacking internet access are at a disadvantage and missing out on important information

Seniors increasingly view the internet and other digital tools and technology as essential resources that positively impact their daily life

“I can see this becoming huge in a few years. Just now we are starting to see people who are interested in technology getting to the point where they can’t use it anymore. In 10 years that will be everyone.” – Director of Nursing, Elderly Home


While smart phone use in seniors lags significantly behind use in the general population, many more seniors use tablets, suggesting that tablets can bridge the “digital divide” and break down some of the barriers that keep seniors from getting connected

The use of devices, and tablets in particular, is substantially reshaping the market for digital content

Source: Tablet Ownership 2013, June 10, 2013, Pew Research Cente

• Using smart phones with touch screens can present significant challenges for elderly users with low vision and musculoskeletal disorders

• “The major implication for design is that current touch screen designs rest on some assumptions that are often not present for elderly users: they are sometimes not able to see what to do on a small screen, nor are they able to push a small area in a way which is not too hard or soft, or too long or short.” – Pew Research Center

• Using a desktop or laptop computer also presents major challenges

• “The dexterity required to control a mouse is really hard for some older adults. A certain level of muscle control is needed. An some older adults have shaking issues, in addition to muscle-control issues in their hands and arms” – Sheila Cotton, Michigan State University Professor of Media and Information

SUMMARY OF KEY FINDINGS: K–12 MARKET LANDSCAPE


Visual impairment

Low Vision (K12 as well) is a significant barrier for Seniors using Digital Technology

Visual Impairment

• Total Population ≥ 40 : 142,648,393

• AMD : 2,069,403

• Cataract : 24,409,978

• Diabetic Retinopathy : 7,685,237

• Glaucoma : 2,719,379

• Chief Complaints among 819 Low Vision patients surveyed at Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine: “Reading” – 66%, “Driving” – 28%, “Using Visual Assistive Equipment” – 18%, “Mobility” – 16%

• Low Vision studies demonstrate that patients receive benefits from magnification, improved contrast, and augmented lighting

• “Patients consistently read faster (P<0.003) on the Apple iPad with larger text sizes (size 24 or greater) when compared with paper. Patients chose the iPad to have the best clarity and print paper as the easiest to use” – Researcher, 2013

Tablets allow seniors to adjust text size, backlighting, and contrast to allow them to see text better while reading or connecting socially with family and friends. Using tablet technology can eliminate or reduce need for challenging visual assistive technology

SUMMARY OF KEY FINDINGS: WHO TO TARGET


Musculoskeletal Disease is a significant barrier for Seniors using Digital Technology

Musculoskeletal Disorders

Total U.S. Population > 65: 44,958,837

Hand Osteoarthritis : 3,600,000

Parkinson’s Disease : 625,000

Multiple Scleroma (MS) : 180,000

• Using smart phones and tablets designed to be gripped by the user can exacerbate existing musculoskeletal problems

• Rubicon Consulting study in 2008 found that 1/10 users report thumb/hand pain from texting

• Recent study conducted by Microsoft and the US Department of Environmental Health shows that tabletusers have a higher potential for “neck and shoulder discomfort” v. using a notebook or desktop computer. iPad users experienced greater neck and flexion angles than using a traditional coputer, resulting in pain and posture issues

• Typical touch technology presents challenges for users with hand tremors

• Tablet with “Touch and Release” technology like Touch Easel would reduce errors from accidental touches caused by tremors or shaking. Having a tablet that could be positioned so that user can use in ergonomically correct and comfortable position would reduce risk for developing or exacerbating musculoskeletal pain and disease


• 90% of seniors 65+ with household income of more than $75,000 per year use internet

•39% of seniors 65+ with household income of less than $30,000 use internet

Which seniors adopt technology?

Patterns of adopting technology in seniors cluster into 2 groups: higher income, higher education, slightly younger and older, lower income, lower education

“We pride ourselves on being up on the latest solutions but we have not heard of Sonzia.” —Educator, MA

sonzia dilligence deck

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