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Britons `spend 15 hours a week online`
It seems a large number of Britons are addicted to surfing, for a study has found that adults in the UK spend an average of 15 hours a week on the internet.
London: It seems a large number of Britons are addicted to surfing, for a study has found that adults in the UK spend an average of 15 hours a week on the internet via the computer or other devices such as smartphones.
The study, based on a survey, has revealed that eight out of 10 adults go online through a different array of devices, an increase of 20 per cent as compared to 2005 data.
A combination of older generations getting online, the continuing rise of social media sites and new technologies such as smartphones are being credited for the rise, the `Daily Mail` reported.
The study showed that 59 per cent of adult internet users have a profile on a social networking site. Of those, two-thirds visit the sites every day, up from a third in 2007. It suggests that while the take-up of the internet has slowed among younger generations, as most are now already online, growth is being driven by older age groups such as 45 to 54-year-olds, part of the "silver surfer" phenomenon.
Internet access for this group has shot up by 10 percentage points in a year to 87 per cent. The research also found the overall estimated weekly internet use had increased from an average of 14.2 hours in 2010 to 15.1 hours last year. Despite the array of portable devices available to access the internet, home usage also increased, from 9.4 to 10.5 hours.
Bob Warner, chairman of the Communications Consumer Panel, which advises media regulator Ofcom that carried out the survey, said: "People over 65 are still less likely to be online, and more likely to say they don`t intend to get the internet at home."
PTI
The study, based on a survey, has revealed that eight out of 10 adults go online through a different array of devices, an increase of 20 per cent as compared to 2005 data.
A combination of older generations getting online, the continuing rise of social media sites and new technologies such as smartphones are being credited for the rise, the `Daily Mail` reported.
The study showed that 59 per cent of adult internet users have a profile on a social networking site. Of those, two-thirds visit the sites every day, up from a third in 2007. It suggests that while the take-up of the internet has slowed among younger generations, as most are now already online, growth is being driven by older age groups such as 45 to 54-year-olds, part of the "silver surfer" phenomenon.
Internet access for this group has shot up by 10 percentage points in a year to 87 per cent. The research also found the overall estimated weekly internet use had increased from an average of 14.2 hours in 2010 to 15.1 hours last year. Despite the array of portable devices available to access the internet, home usage also increased, from 9.4 to 10.5 hours.
Bob Warner, chairman of the Communications Consumer Panel, which advises media regulator Ofcom that carried out the survey, said: "People over 65 are still less likely to be online, and more likely to say they don`t intend to get the internet at home."
PTI