Online Usage Round-Up: Internet Usage Reaches All Time High
The total number of internet users reached more than 28 million across the second quarter of 2006, according to figures released by BMRB. This is the highest number of users yet and represents a 10.6% increase from the same period last year.
The overall number of users has risen by just over five million since 2004, highlighting the increasing popularity of going online.
Usage Location
The number of home internet users now stands at more than 26 million, a healthy increase of 12.3% year on year, although this is slightly smaller than the 15.5% growth experienced in the same period from 2004 to 2005.
There are now six million more home internet users than there were in 2004, suggesting that the web is increasingly become a part of people’s home media consumption.
| Internet Users By Location | |||||
| (‘000s) | 2nd Qtr 04 | 2nd Qtr 05 | 2nd Qtr 06 | YoY % Change Q204 – Q205 | YoY % Change Q205 – Q206 |
| All users | 23.314 | 25.617 | 28.342 | 9.87 | 10.63 |
| Work users | 7.646 | 8.791 | 9.958 | 14.97 | 13.27 |
| Home users | 20.17 | 23.301 | 26.188 | 15.52 | 12.39 |
| Academic users | 3.284 | 3.498 | 3.639 | 6.51 | 4.03 |
Gender
The number of women going online is increasing at a quicker rate than its male counterparts. Usage amongst women increased by 13%, whilst usage for men was up by 8.6% from the same period in 2005.
However, men still account for the majority of internet users. They currently make up around 15 million users compared to 13.3 million women.
| Internet Users By Gender | |||||
| (millions) | 2nd Qtr 04 | 2nd Qtr 05 | 2nd Qtr 06 | YoY % Change 04 – 05 | YoY % Change 05 – 06 |
| Male | 12.58 | 13.83 | 15.02 | 9.93 | 8.6 |
| Female | 10.72 | 11.78 | 13.32 | 9.88 | 13.07 |
Age
Whilst the younger age groups remain the dominant users of the web, the biggest increases in usage occurred in the two eldest age groupings. Those aged 65+ accounted for more than 29% growth, whilst the 55-64-year-olds grew by over 20% year on year.
Those aged between 35-44 remain the largest grouping, registering 6.5 million users, up 10.5% from 2005.
| Internet Users By Age | |||||
| (millions) | 2nd Qtr 04 | 2nd Qtr 05 | 2nd Qtr 06 | YoY % Change 04 – 05 | YoY % Change 05 – 06 |
| 15-24 | 5.12 | 5.63 | 5.95 | 9.96 | 5.68 |
| 25-34 | 4.89 | 5.37 | 5.66 | 9.81 | 5.4 |
| 35-44 | 5.36 | 5.89 | 6.51 | 9.88 | 10.52 |
| 45-54 | 3.96 | 4.35 | 4.81 | 9.84 | 10.57 |
| 55-64 | 2.56 | 2.81 | 3.4 | 9.76 | 20.99 |
| 65+ | 1.39 | 1.53 | 1.98 | 10.07 | 29.41 |
Social Grade
The number of DEs online rose by over 26.5%, meaning they now make up around 4.5 million users. The second biggest change occurred in the C2 category, which produced an almost 17% increase in users from 2005.
Internet usage remains dominated by AB and C1s, who account for 9 million and 9.3 million users respectively.
| Internet Users By Social Grade | |||||
| (millions) | 2nd Qtr 04 | 2nd Qtr 05 | 2nd Qtr 06 | YoY % Change 04 – 05 | YoY % Change 05 – 06 |
| AB | 8.15 | 8.7 | 9.06 | 6.74 | 4.13 |
| C1 | 7.92 | 8.7 | 9.35 | 9.84 | 7.47 |
| C2 | 4.19 | 4.61 | 5.38 | 10.02 | 16.7 |
| DE | 3.03 | 3.58 | 4.53 | 18.15 | 26.53 |
BMRB: www.bmrb.co.uk