Net access from home growing steadily in the UK

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By Alun Williams

Posted on 29 Apr 2003 at 13:03

The National Statistics Office has released new figures on home access to the Internet in the UK.

For the period October to December 2002 an estimated 11.4 million households in the UK could access the Internet from home. Apparently, this equates to 45 per cent of all households, which is an increase of 3 per cent from the period of January to March 2002.

Furthermore, it is calculated that in the month prior to the survey, 50 per cent of adults had accessed the Internet. Other headline figures include the fact that nearly one in two people accessing the Net had made an online purchase in the previous three months and 19 per cent had spent more than £500 online.

The figures come from the February 2003 National Statistics Omnibus Survey and an Expenditure and Food Survey (EFS).

Men still use the Internet more frequently than women, according to the survey - 62 per cent of men who accessed the Net for private use did so more than once a week, compared with 47 per cent of women. Thirty-two per cent of male users accessed it at least once a day, compared with 23 per cent of women.

For the first time, family households were asked about the children's access to the Net (a child being under 16). Eighty per cent of adults replied that at least one child had gone on the Internet at some time. Note that 81 per cent had access at school, and 73 per cent from home.

Why do people go online? 'Finding information about goods or services' is the most popular repsonse (79 per cent). This is followed by 'Finding information related to education' (forty per cent) and keeping up with the news (26 per cent). Downloading music accounts for 23 per cent and downloading other software (20 per cent). General browsing accounted for 53 per cent, while 24 per cent involved looking for work.

Significantly, 48 per cent of respondents went online to make purchases, and the survey attempted to discover what they are buying. Travel-related purchases lead the way (31 per cent), followed by tickets for events (21 per cent), music or CDs (21 per cent) and books or magazines (19 per cent).

People were was also asked how much they had spent on goods or services on the Internet. The figures show that 39 per cent of those who had made a purchase had spent less than £100 (in the three months prior to the interview). Seventeen per cent had spent in the range of £101 to £200 and 24 per cent had spent between £201 and £500. Nineteen per cent had spent more than £500.

Finally, in terms of how the Net is accessed, 99 per cent of access is through computers. Nine per cent however, had used the smarter variety of mobile phone, and six per cent had used digital television.