Web use predicted to surge
26/06/2008
Asia will lead the growth in internet usage over the next few years - a substantial new online market.
The number of web users logging onto the internet around the world will soar by 44 per cent to reach 1.8 billion in the next few years, it has been claimed.
A study by JupiterResearch has suggested that internet user numbers will surge to account for a quarter of the total global population by 2012.
Double-digit growth will be seen on an annual basis in emerging economies as web users in these countries increasingly seek to carry out ever more advanced online activities, the research firm said.
The report noted that the likes of Brazil, Russia, India and China will see the highest rates of growth over the next few years, while China will leapfrog the US to become the nation with the biggest online population by 2011.
"Asia will not only have the highest online growth rate compared to other regions in the world, but will also present a substantially large pool of sophisticated online users as a market to tap into," remarked David Schatsky, president of JupiterResearch.
The findings echo those of another new study from IDC suggesting that about three in ten of the global population will regularly access the internet by 2012.
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