Portugal

There were 4,475,700 internet users in Portugal (representing 41.8% of the population) in September 2009, according to Internet World Stats. This was up by 79% compared to 2000. (Internet World Stats, November 2009)

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More than 3.8 million people age 15 and older accessed the internet from a home or work location in Portugal in September 2009 (+4% compared to the previous year), according to comScore's study of the online habits of Portuguese internet users. They viewed an average 1,843 pages and spent an average 1.9 hours online per person during the month.

comScore believes that Portugal represents a dynamic and growing internet market in Europe with users continuing to be more active and engaged online. The average internet user in Portugal is spending more time online engaging in different behaviors such as reading news and articles, search, conducting personal financial transactions and social networking. As these behaviors continue to take hold in the Portuguese market there will be an increasing number of opportunities to leverage the internet for marketing and advertising purposes. (comScore, November 2009)

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In the first quarter of 2008, a computer was used by 45.9% of all individuals aged 16 to 74 years old and the internet by 41.9%. Compared to 2004, the average annual growth rates reveal that the usage of computer and internet has grown 5.5% and 9.5%, respectively. (Statistics Portugal, October 2008)

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92.7% of individuals aged between 10 and 15 years old in Portugal used the internet in the first quarter of 2008, according to the survey of Information and Communication Technologies Usage in Households and by Individuals by Statistics Portugal. This was up from 73.5% in 2005.

Percentage of Internet users among individuals aged 10-15 years old in Portugal by region, first quarter 2008:
- Portugal: 92.7% (73.5% in 2005)
- Norte: 92.9% (71.9%)
- Centro: 92.9% (77.2%)
- Lisboa: 94.1% (75.9%)
- Alentejo: 89.4% (68.0%)
- Algarve: 86.8% (79.8%)
- Açores: 90.0% (51.0%)
- Madeira: 92.9% (74.1%)
(Statistics Portugal, February 2009)

Search Engines and Searches

The most popular property in Portugal in September 2009 was Google Sites with 3.6 million visitors, reaching 93.6% of the total online population, followed by Microsoft Sites and Portugal Telecom, according to comScore's study of the online habits of Portuguese internet users. Social networking site, Hi5.com, ranked as Portugal's fourth most popular online property in September.

Instant messaging services and social networking sites combined to account for more than one third (36.5%) of the total time spent online in Portugal, with the heaviest users of social networking sites (top 20% of visitors to the site category) spending an average of 13.4 hours on these sites during the month.

Top 10 online properties in Portugal (Total Portugal - age 15+, Home & Work locations*), September 2009:

TOTAL INTERNET: TOTAL AUDIENCE: 3,816,000 (+4% compared to September 2008)
1. Google Sites: 3,570,000 (+21%)
2. Microsoft Sites: 3,397,000 (+21%)
3. Portugal Telecom: 2,398,000 (+13%)
4. Hi5.com: 2,329,000 (+17%)
5. Yahoo! Sites: 1,422,000 (+33%)
6. UOL: 1,254,000 (+29%)
7. Grupo Impresa: 1,215,000 (+12%)
8. Wikimedia Foundation Sites: 1,148,000 (+13%)
9. Grupo Brasil Telecom: 1,119,000 (+30%)
10. WordPress: 1,058,000 (+23%)
*Excludes traffic from public computers such as Internet cafes or access from mobile phones or PDAs.
(comScore, November 2009) 

In the first quarter of 2008, 49.8% of households had access to a computer at home and 46% to the internet. Of these, 85.5% (39.3% of the total households) made the connection through broadband. (Statistics Portugal, October 2008)

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82.8% of individuals aged between 10 and 15 years old in Portugal accessed the internet from home in the first quarter of 2008, according to the survey of Information and Communication Technologies Usage in Households and by Individuals by Statistics Portugal. This was up from 62.0% in 2005.

Locations of internet access among individuals aged between 10 and 15 years, first quarter 2008:
- Home: 82.8% (62.0% in 2005)
- School: 87.5% (89.3%)
- Relatives/Friends/Neighbours' house: 53.5% (42.2%)
- Other locations: 25.6% (26.9%)
(Statistics Portugal, February 2009)

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46% of households in Portugal had access to the internet during the first quarter of 2008, according to the results of the survey on Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) usage by Eurostat. This was up from 40% in 2007 and 35% in 2006. (Eurostat, December 2008)

Social Networking and UGC

Slightly less than 3 million people visited a social networking site in Portugal in September 2009, according to comScore's study of the online habits of Portuguese internet users.  This was up 16% compared to the previous year and represents 78.4% of the total Portuguese online population.

Hi5.com was the most popular social networking site with 2.3 million visitors, followed by Windows Live Profile, Facebook.com and MySpace Sites.

While Hi5.com remained the market leader in Portugal in September, international sites proved to be a growing force in the Portuguese social networking space. Facebook.com grew 463% on the previous year. Badoo was up 3,018%, while Twitter.com grew 842% in the past year.

Top 10 social networking sites in Portugal* (Total Portugal - Age 15+, Home & Work Locations), September 2009:
TOTAL INTERNET: TOTAL AUDIENCE: 3,816,000 (+4% compared to September 2008)
Social Networking: 2,992,000 (+16%)
1. Hi5.com: 2,329,000 (+17%)
2. Windows Live Profile: 1,225,000
3. Facebook.com: 639,000 (+463%)
4. MySpace Sites: 289,000 (+8%)
5. Orkut: 256,000 (+50%)
6. Twitter.com: 249,000 (+842%)
7. Netlog.com: 244,000 (+19%)
8. Badoo.com: 238,000 (+3,018%)
9. Windows Live People: 218.000
10. Deviantart.com: 156,000 (+67%)
*Excludes traffic from public computers such as Internet cafes or access from mobile phones or PDAs.
(comScore, November 2009)  

eCommerce

6% of all individuals in Portugal had used internet for ordering goods or services in the first quarter of 2008, according to the results of the survey on Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) usage by Eurostat. (Eurostat, December 2008)

12% of all individuals aged 16-74 in Portugal had used internet for travel and accommodation services in the first quarter of 2008, according to the results of the survey on Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) by Eurostat. (Eurostat, December 2008) 

Travel Booking

Online travel continues to grow in Spain and Portugal's dynamic travel markets. There is no doubt that the Iberian travel sector has woken up and the region is certainly beginning to reap the rewards of a huge, international tourism boom. 

Online travel is growing rapidly. According to DBK, ecommerce in the travel sector generated EUR200 million in 2006. (EyeforTravel, September 2007)

Travel Industry Online Developments

80.3% of hotel establishments in Portugal in 2008 used computer to the development of their activity, according to the results of the first survey on Information and Communication in Hotel Establishments 2008 by Statistics Portugal. 77.8% had access to the Internet and 75.4% were present in this network.

70% of hotel establishments with online access had broadband; DSL were the most popular connections (75%). The proportion of hotel establishments that made, in the year of 2007, bookings through the Internet reached 65%. (Statistics Portugal, February 2009) 

39% of households in Portugal had a broadband internet connection during the first quarter of 2008, according to the results of the survey on Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) usage by Eurostat. This was up from 30% in 2007 and 24% in 2006. (Eurostat, December 2008)