Global uncertainty and AI are changing consumer behavior in the digital home

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• 86% of people in Switzerland fear that trade conflicts will continue to drive prices for electronic devices or connectivity.
• In Switzerland, the cancellation rate for streaming has risen by 12% in the space of a year.
• Almost half of respondents in Switzerland (45%) use generative AI in their day-to-day lives, but at the same time express data protection concerns (58%).
• A form of contradictory loyalty is evident, both in Switzerland and globally: customer loyalty comes about as much from a concern that switching is too complicated and time-consuming as it does from satisfaction with the price and performance of the product.

Zurich, 15 December 2025 – “Decoding the Digital Home 2025,” a new study by the auditing and consulting firm EY, shows that geopolitical uncertainty, the increasing influence of artificial intelligence and high price sensitivity are shaping digital consumer behavior in Switzerland and globally in 2025. Trust, data protection and loyalty are becoming decisive factors – from streaming to connectivity.

The market in Switzerland is stable but not very dynamic. 58% of those surveyed in Switzerland are satisfied with the price/performance ratio of their internet provider, while 42% find switching providers too complicated. This confirms a globally observable pattern of contradictory loyalty, namely that customer loyalty results partly from genuine popularity, but also from concern about the complexity of switching.

For the “Decoding the Digital Home 2025” study, 20,500 consumers in 14 countries were asked about their behavior and attitudes towards technology, media and telecommunications. Other countries taking part besides Switzerland were Australia, Germany, France, Italy, Canada, the Netherlands, Norway, Austria, Sweden, Spain, South Korea, the United Kingdom and the United States. 1,000 consumers from Switzerland took part in the study.

Roman Haltinner, Cybersecurity Competency Leader at EY in Switzerland, says: “The increasing intertwining of digitalization, global risks and artificial intelligence clearly shows that trust is becoming a decisive success factor. Companies must create security architectures that are not only technically robust, but also convey transparency and reliability. This is the only way to restore consumers’ lost sense of security and lay the foundations for stable digital ecosystems.”

Global uncertainty increases price sensitivity

Private consumption has already been under pressure a number of times this decade – be it as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic or the subsequent cost-of-living crisis. This year, geopolitical tensions have intensified in the form of new tariffs. The imposition of these tariffs has already led to higher prices for various consumer goods, as well as influencing perceptions of price fairness. In Switzerland, 63% of respondents feel that annual price increases by their internet provider are unfair, while 53% find them difficult to accept.

Cost sensitivity remains high in Switzerland: 62% of households want to spend as little as possible on communication services. 43% of respondents would be willing to switch to a cheaper package, even if it meant a lower quality of service or limited customer support. In addition, 69% of respondents would like broadband and internet providers to do more to offer fixed price guarantees to households.

Geopolitical developments are reinforcing this view: 27% of respondents worldwide are extremely to very concerned about rising monthly connectivity costs as a result of trade conflicts. In Switzerland, the vast majority express similar strong concerns: 27% of respondents – who are extremely to very concerned – fear that trade conflicts could further increase the prices of electronic devices such as smartphones, connectivity (27%) or streaming subscriptions (26%). Only about 15% of respondents are not at all concerned about the potential impact of trade conflicts on their monthly spending. The choice of provider also reflects geopolitical considerations, with many respondents preferring local providers, such as broadband and mobile phone companies with a customer service department in their own country (27%), domestic technology manufacturers (23%) or content from Swiss producers (21%). Just over a fifth of respondents (21%) said that geopolitical factors had no impact on their choice.

Streaming in transition: price awareness increasing, content becoming more important

In Switzerland, more than half of households (66%) use at least one paid video streaming service. Almost half of those surveyed in Switzerland (47%) spend between CHF 10 and CHF 29 per month on this. Price and content dominate the choice of provider: 55% pay attention to attractive prices, 36% to their favorite content and 32% to an extensive media library. 63% of Swiss people feel price increases are unfair, while 50% perceive a good price/performance ratio.

Streaming remains popular, but the willingness to cancel is increasing. The proportion of respondents in Switzerland who have canceled their streaming subscription or are planning to do so has risen from 26% to 38% in the space of a year. This is exactly in line with the global average. Cost savings are the main reason for canceling (28%); at the same time, 85% are slightly to extremely concerned that trade conflicts could further increase streaming prices.

Nevertheless, the user base remains stable: 36% in Switzerland rarely think about canceling, compared with 42% globally. At the same time, high-quality and exclusive content is gaining in importance as a new incentive. 36% of Swiss people are particularly interested in certain films or series and 32% in large content libraries – this is almost identical to the global figures (36%/32%). Globally, exclusive content (28%) is among the top selection criteria, particularly in Australia, Italy and the United Kingdom.

Generative AI is gaining ground – but trust remains fragile

Generative AI is gradually changing consumer behavior around the world. In Switzerland, the technology is already established in everyday private and professional life, with 45% of those surveyed actively using it. This puts Switzerland ahead of the global average, where 38% use AI in their day-to-day lives privately and 37% professionally. Acceptance in day-to-day life continues to grow. 52% of Swiss people find AI functions on their smartphones useful – for example voice assistants, copywriting and photo editing (50% globally). 45% find AI-powered customer support such as chatbots useful (45% globally). In addition, 42% (38% globally) find AI-generated search results more helpful than traditional ones.

At the same time, trust remains fragile in terms of data protection and trust concerns. 58% of Swiss respondents fear that their personal data could be misused to train AI systems. 59% of people in Switzerland and 58% globally fear that governments and supervisory authorities are not doing enough to limit the potential risks of AI. In addition, 61% of those polled in Switzerland express the concern that AI makes online content less trustworthy and 66% fear misuse by “bad actors”. 72% of global respondents demand clear labeling of AI-generated content, with the figure in Switzerland as high as 75%.

Adrian Ott, Chief AI Officer EY Switzerland says: “Despite the growing acceptance of AI systems, the survey shows that major question marks remain over the use of personal data and the traceability of generated content.”

When stable connections are no longer enough – customer loyalty is changing

Network quality remains a key challenge, even if the Swiss market as a whole is characterized by a high degree of stability and satisfaction. 58% of respondents are satisfied with the price/performance ratio of their broadband provider. A common reason against switching providers is the perceived effort, with 42% in Switzerland and 37% globally naming this. Internet speed also plays a role. 56% of Swiss people do not think switching to faster internet is financially worthwhile, while 40% say they are frustrated by the fact that the fastest packages are not available at all in their region. The study shows that loyalty is increasingly shifting: just because a customer is loyal does not always mean they are satisfied; often, it is because they are reluctant to go to the trouble of switching.

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EY’s organization is represented in Switzerland by Ernst & Young Ltd, Basel, with 10 offices across Switzerland, and in Liechtenstein by Ernst & Young AG, Vaduz. In this publication, “EY” and “we” refer to Ernst & Young Ltd, Basel, a member firm of Ernst & Young Global Limited.