America Will Hold Many of their Holiday Celebrations Virtually, Thanks to COVID. Asurion Home+ is Ready.

The recent rise in COVID-19 across the country is shaping how Americans celebrate this Thanksgiving.  A new study by home tech protection and support service Asurion Home+ examined America’s holiday plans this year and found that nearly three-quarters (72%) intend to celebrate the holidays virtually, with 93% of those who plan to e-gather citing the recent rise in COVID-19 as a factor.

Perfect for preparing for this year’s holiday get-togethers, Asurion Home+ provides expert home tech protection and support to help keep the devices America uses most running smoothly. From making sure your Wi-Fi is positioned for the best connection, to helping grandma cast from her phone to her TV to see the grandkids better, or selecting what devices to purchase to make your holiday e-gatherings run smoothly – the Experts at Asurion Home+ have your back.

“Asurion understands that this year’s holiday e-gatherings are more important than ever before, especially this year when we can’t all be together in person,” said Sarah Day, Asurion VP of Marketing Asurion Home Technology Innovation. “With so much of America planning to connect virtually this year, our Asurion Home+ Experts can help them get the most out of their tech to ensure this year’s celebrations happen without a hitch.”

Here's what else the Asurion Home+ holiday survey found:

Get Ready to E-Gather

Over 70% of Americans agree that being together either in-person or virtually this holiday season is more important than it has been in previous years¹.  For Americans celebrating virtually, here’s how they will e-gather this Thanksgiving:

• The average virtual holiday celebration will last nearly two hours and include 11 people¹
• Over a third will participate in 3 or more Thanksgiving dinners via video¹
• Nearly half will have 3 or more Friendsgivings¹
• Three-quarters will have at least one virtual cooking or baking session with friends and family this holiday season¹

Virtual Video Celebrations Bring New Challenges… and Missing Family Members

• Nearly half of Americans celebrating virtually say a family member will be missing from their celebrations this year because they are virtual. They cite technical difficulties as the top reason – either they don’t have the right devices, they don’t have internet, or they don’t know how to use their tech to join a call¹
• More than 75% who’ll plan to celebrate virtually say they need to learn new tech skills before celebrations can start – from how to set up a call to how to share a link for others to join in¹

Preparing Your Tech is Key to a Smooth Celebration

About three-quarters of America will spend time preparing to celebrate the holidays virtually, but people still have major concerns when it comes to what may happen during the actual celebration. Low-quality video or audio, buffering, distracting background noise, trouble using basic features and trouble logging in are the main worries as people head into these online gatherings¹. In the moment, these issues can feel daunting but a little preparation can keep you connected.

Connect, Protect and Enjoy Your Home Tech

Asurion Home+ combines tech protection coverage for all your personal home tech along with fast, flexible support for those devices in the method of your choice – from the comfort of your couch or through our network of stores. When the tech that matters most stops working, Asurion Home+ repairs, replaces and provides support for all the tech you own now and in the future – including TVs and laptops, tablets, smart watches, gaming systems, smart home assistants and more – regardless of the brand, where or when you purchased it. Asurion Home+ services include fast and easy repairs; U.S.-based 24/7 Expert tech help via online, chat or phone; and friendly in-person help at any of the nearly more than 550 uBreakiFix by Asurion stores nationwide.

To learn more, visit www.asurion.com/homeplus.

¹Random double-opt in online survey of 2,000 general population Americans conducted from Oct. 29-30, 2020 for Asurion Home+ by OnePoll, a market research company and corporate member of ESOMAR and AAPOR and which adheres to the MRS code of conduct.