Usage Patterns and Demographics - New Media Trend Watch UK

Total Online Population (000's) in 2009:	46,684
Percentage of Population Online in 2009:	76.4%

Demographics

There were 46,683,900 internet users in the UK (representing 76.4% of the population) in September 2009, according to Internet World Stats. This was up by 203.1% compared to 2000. (Internet World Stats, November 2009)

More than 39 million UK residents use the internet in 2009, according to estimates by eMarketer. By 2013, nearly 44 million will be online, representing more than 70% of the total UK population.

Usage has risen in all age groups, but especially among young people. The UK's Office of Communications (Ofcom) reported that 2/3 of children ages 5 to 7 were online in 2009, an increase of 16 percentage points since 2007. Among children ages 8 to 11, Web penetration rose from 65% in 2007 to 77% in 2009.

Marketers can be confident that virtually all segments of the UK population, except some senior citizens and lower-income households, are using the Web more than ever to research products and services and to keep tabs on brand offerings, according to eMarketer.

Most UK Web users are online more frequently, too. Ofcom noted that in 2009, 73% of adults who had been online in the previous three months were daily internet users, compared with 69% in 2008. (eMarketer, December 2009)

43.7 million people will use the internet in the UK by 2013, according to eMarketer. This would be up from 39.4 million in 2009.

Internet users in the UK 2008-2013:
- 2008: 38.1 million
- 2009: 39.4 million
- 2010: 40.6 million
- 2011: 41.7 million
- 2012: 42.8 million
- 2013: 43.7 million
(eMarketer, May 2009)

Some 18.31 million UK households now have internet access, which is an increase of 1.85 million from 2008, according to a new report published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). In 2009, 16.5 million people - 63% of all UK house holds - had broadband connections, representing an increase of 6.6 million since 2006.

The report also found that an estimated 73 %or 27.3 million adults accessed the internet everyday or almost everyday.

But 16-24 age group took the prize for most frequent users, with an estimated 86% using it everyday.

The ONS found that the most popular use of the internet was for email. Increases in the popularity and use of social networking sites were shown in the findings with an increase of 24% to 40% of users who said they'd uploaded self created content.

It also reported an 8% increase in the number of users listening to, or viewing content, online since 2008, which illustrates a growing number of broadcasters are making their content available online, said the report.

The majority of people (94%) still accessed the internet from home, claimed the report. But the growing numbers of Wi-Fi hotspots in the UK between 2007 and 2009 has lead to an increase from just under 700,000 people accessing via hotspots in 2007 to almost 2.5 million in 2009. (ITPro, August 2009)

Internet users will have to make do with slower and more unreliable connections as online traffic increases, according to a report by Nemertes Research. The report claims that services like the iPlayer and websites like YouTube could mean that bandwidth exceeded supply as early as 2010, according to a report in the Sunday Times.

Experts claimed that this would lead on to computers being disrupted and going off line for minutes at a time. The researchers said that the web had reached a critical point and even the recession had failed to stave off problems, as more people were looking for work or working online from home. (ITPRO at , April 2009)

Office of Communications (Ofcom) found that 65% of kids ages 8 to 11 had Internet access at home in 2007. Among children ages 12 to 15, the percentage rose to 75%.
eMarketer estimates that in the UK 4.2 million young people ages 8 to 15 had Internet access at home in 2007, with the majority of teens online. The

In addition, most young people in the UK are attached to their mobile phones, and spend hours sending SMS texts, photos and other personal content to their friends.

Ofcoms report on The Communications Market 2008 tracked the evolving media habits of children and young teenagers in the UK.

Following changing usage is crucial for marketers hoping to appeal to young people who are splitting their time between a growing number of media platforms. These increasingly complex media usage patterns require increasingly sophisticated media responses from marketers. (eMarketer, November 2008)

eMarketer estimates that 1.3 million UK residents have come online since 2007, and a similar number will access the Web for the first time between 2008 and 2009. The UK Internet Users and Usage report analyses the continued growth of online in the UK. It is estimated that the number of Internet users in the UK reached 36.8 million in 2007, and will pass 38 million in 2008 - equivalent to 62.6% of the entire population. (eMarketer, November 2008)

UK residents increasingly use the internet as a tool for social and political action, as well as e-mail, shopping, watching videos and keeping up with the latest news. eMarketer estimates that the number of internet users in the UK reached 36.8 million in 2007, and will pass 38 million in 2008 - equivalent to 62.6% of the entire population.

With only one exception eMarketer estimates are higher than the available figures suggested by other research firms for 2007 and 2008. The main reason for the discrepancy is that eMarketer is the only one that takes all ages and all access locations into account and includes mobile internet access.

Though the mobile Web market has been slow to take off, the number of mobile UK Web users is increasingly significant and will play a stronger role in future years. According to Entertainment Media Research, less than 10% of adult internet users in the UK were regularly browsing the web on a mobile phone as of January 2008, though the proportion was significantly higher among men ages 15 to 34 and women ages 20 to 34. (eMarketer, October 2008)

Education plays a key role as to whether people have internet access in their homes or not. Almost all adults (93%) aged under 70 who had a degree or equivalent qualification were estimated to have access to the internet in their home. Data from internet Access 2008: Households and Individuals showed those individuals who had no formal qualifications were least likely (56%) to have an internet connection in their home.

The survey also revealed households in the South East were more likely to have internet access in their home (74%), while those in the North East were least likely (54%). Almost 16.5 million households in the UK had internet access in 2008. This represents nearly two thirds of the total households in the UK, and a rise of more than 1.2 million since 2007.

Of adults living in households with no internet access, there has been a significant increase in the proportion who stated they did not want the internet in their homes. This increased from 3%in 2006 to 24% in 2008. (Office for National Statistics, October 2008)

eMarketer estimates that only 4.7 million UK adults ages 55 to 64 currently use the internet, and only 2.6 million of those 65 and older are online. While these might sound like large numbers, in fact they reflect rather disappointing levels of adoption. According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), 63% of users 55 to 64 are online, but only 26% of adults in the 65 and older age group use the web. (eMarketer, October 2008)

Nielsen Online reveals how Britons are changing the way they spend their time online. People are spending less time on communication and content sites and more on consumer generated media, search and entertainment sites, according to Nielsen Online:
- Britons, on average, are spending just 4% more time online a month than they did a year ago.
- Overall, consumer generated media (+47%), search (+13%) and entertainment (+8%) sites have experienced the biggest increases in online time.
- Communication (-10%), and content sites (-3%) have experienced the biggest decreases.
- Member communities (social networks and blogging sites) have had the biggest increase in total UK minutes over the last year (+1.3 billion) followed by online games (+0.5 billion).
- Instant Messaging has had the biggest decrease (-1.0 billion) followed by sports sites (-0.2 billion).

Consumers aren't spending significantly more time online than they were a year ago, which means that, if one sector grows, another tends to shrink. As a whole, the communication (including Instant Messaging which has lost a billion minutes) and content sectors (including portals, ISPs and government), have been the ones to suffer most from the exploding consumer generated media phenomenon. (Nielsen Online, June 2008)

Between 2001/02 and 2006 the proportion of adults in Great Britain who had used the internet in the last three months increased by one-quarter, from 48% to 60%, according to National Statistics. Almost 6 in 10 (59%) internet users aged 16 and over went online every day or almost every day in 2006, while 4% went online less than once a month.

Internet use is more common among the young, and declines with age. In 2006, 84% of people aged 16 to 24 had used the internet within the last three months, compared with 52% of people aged 55 to 64 and 15% of those aged 65 and over.

Looking for information and using email were the two most common online activities of internet users in 2006. These were done by 85% and 81% of adult users respectively in the three months before interview in 2006. (Office for National Statistics, March 2007)

Silver surfers in the UK are claiming a bigger share of the online population at the expense of people under 25, according to Nielsen Online, a service of The Nielsen Company.
- Over the last year (Oct 06 - Oct 07), the share of the UK internet population made up by under 25 year-olds has decreased from 29% to 25% - a relative drop in share of 16%
- During the same period the share made of 55+ year-olds has increased from 16% to 19% a relative increase of 22%
- Overall, the average age of the UK internet population has risen from 35.7 to 37.9 in this period
(Nielsen-NetRatings, December 2007)

UK internet users aged 55+, the so-called silver surfers, are set to overtake 35-44 year olds as the demographic age group with the largest representation online, according to Hitwise. Those aged 55+ accounted for 22% of UK visits to all categories of websites in the four weeks to 12th May 2007, up 54% since 2005 and 40% since 2006. This compares to 23.5% of internet visits from 35-44 year olds.

The increase has come from rich and poor alike. The Experian Mosaic groups "Twilight Subsistence" (pensioners subsisting on meagre incomes) and "Grey Perspectives" (pensioners enjoying retirement with savings to supplement their pensions) have both increased their online footprint. internet visits from Twilight subsistence are up 29% over the past two years and visits from Grey Perspectives are up 30%.

Among the top categories visited by those aged 55+, Search Engines, Adult and Shopping & Classifieds are the favourites, and are consistent with the most visited categories overall. Hitwise indicates that the wealthiest groups continue to be more active online than their less well-off counterparts. (TravelDailyNews, May 2007)

The British public is more tech-savvy than ever before, according to the Ofcom annual report that takes a look at the way the British public use existing and emerging technology, both in the home and in business. It reveals some interesting trends, including massive growth in mobile phone use, declining interest in TV and radio and a huge rise in web use.

Of the age groups surveyed, it is the over-65s (the so-called Silver Surfers) that use the web the most, spending an average of 42 hours per month online, more than any other age group.

Despite changes in the quantity of each activity, the average user still spends 50 hours per week making calls, using the internet, watching TV and listening to the radio. (ITPRO newsletter for Friday 24 August 2007, August 2007)

Consumers from ethnic minority groups are among the most enthusiastic and technology aware consumers of communications services in the UK, according to research published by Ofcom. They watch less TV - especially the biggest traditional channels and those with internet are more likely to have broadband and to use and depend on a mobile phone than the rest of the population.

Ofcom's Communications Market Special Report on ethnic minority groups (EMGs), which was based on a survey of adults from a range of different EMGs found that, when asked, 83% said that communications technology is important to them. This compares to the UK average of 69%. In addition some 72% of people from EMGs said that they keep up with technology compared to the UK average of 59%,and 63% said they could not happily live without a mobile phone (50% UK).

The report shows that take-up levels of telecoms and internet services among people from EMGs compare favourably to the overall UK population. Of all internet users in the UK, a higher proportion of people from EMGs have broadband (80%) than the UK average (74%). Some 86% of EMG households have a fixed-line telephone (89% UK) and mobile take-up was higher among EMGs (83% vs. 80% UK average). (Ofcom, June 2007)

Surfing the internet in the UK has overtaken more traditional pastimes such as DIY (do-it-yourself) and gardening, according to a survey of English pensioners' behaviour by insurer AXA.

The report has discovered a generation of silver surfers and lists the preferred pastimes among retired adults in the UK in 2006 (% of respondents):
- Internet usage: 41%
- DIY/gardening: 39%
- Special interests: 36%
- Travel: 28%
- Walking/hiking: 28%

The report revealed that far from being isolated at their PCs and losing touch with relatives, the internet-savvy elderly are embracing the Web to enhance their social lives and keep in touch with family.

Of those questioned, 66% regularly contact their children online and 42% chat with or e-mail their grandchildren over the internet. (eMarketer, February 2007)

The digital divide between the UK nations is diminishing, according to Ofcom Communications Market Report for the Nations and Regions of the UK.

The 2006 report showed significant differences, particularly in take-up levels of broadband and digital television, both between the nations and also between those living in urban and rural areas. The 2007 report shows those gaps are closing. In 2005 there was a 12% gap between the number of adults with broadband at home in Northern Ireland (lowest at 24%), Wales (25%), Scotland (31%) and England (highest at 36%). This year's report shows that by 2006 this gap had reduced to 3%. Take-up in England stood at 45% and in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales had reached 42%.

In 2005, the gap between the nations in terms of digital television take-up was even larger at 19% (Wales at 72%, England at 66%, Scotland at 60% and NI at 53%). By 2006, this gap had reduced to 13% (Wales at 82%, England at 75%, Scotland at 76% and NI at 69%).

The proportion of UK households able to receive competitive broadband and phone services through local loop unbundling (LLU) increased by 27% points over the year from 40% at the end of 2005 to 67% at the end of the 2006. LLU enables providers other than BT to fully control the equipment in the exchange and to offer a range of competitive phone and broadband services. Almost 3 out of 10 UK households (29%) took multiple services from a single telecoms provider in 2006 (fixed line phone and broadband for example). Bundling is highest in Northern Ireland (32%) and lowest in Wales at 22%. Growth in bundling has been fuelled by growing broadband take-up and increasing LLU availability. (Ofcom, May 2007)

E-mail Services and Marketing

UK residents are getting more sales-oriented e-mails than ever, but they are opening fewer of them, according to the "National Email Benchmarking Survey" from the UK's Direct Marketing Association (DMA).

Britons received 37% more sales-oriented e-mails during the 3rd quarter of 2006 than they did in that quarter a year before. However, the average "unique open rate," which indicates if e-mails are actually opened, decreased from 25% in the 3rd quarter of 2005 to only 18% a year later. One possible reason for the decrease is that e-mail readers are less interested in the content that is making it into their in-boxes. (eMarketer, April 2007)

Digital Media

The VisitBritain.tv channel launched earlier in 2009 provides a YouTube-esque library showcasing all of Britain's tourist product. The channel has surpassed 400,000 distributed views in its first four months. Any tourism business can be featured, regardless of size. The service is a free service to everyone in the tourism industry in the UK. (Visitbritain eNews - 2 September 2009, September 2009)

The total number of videos viewed online in the UK in April 2009 grew 47% versus a year ago to 4.7 billion videos, according to comScore. The report also found that 21.8 million UK internet users viewed a total of 971 million online display ads on multimedia sites during the month.

Google Sites ranked as the top UK online video property in April with 2.4 billion videos viewed, an increase of 58% versus a year ago, driven by the popularity of YouTube.com, which accounted for 99% of all videos viewed on the property. BBC Sites ranked second with 79 million videos viewed, followed by ITV Sites (34.7 million videos), Megavideo.com (31.7 million videos), and Microsoft Sites (30.2 million videos). Each of the top ten video properties experienced double-digit growth during the past year, while several saw their number of videos viewed multiply by a factor of two or three. (comScore, July 2009)

The Entertainment category has overtaken the retail category in share of UK visits for the first time ever, according to Hitwise. The Hitwise Shopping & Classifieds category had been the third most popular category based on UK visits until early June, when Entertainment claimed the position.

Entertainment is among the fastest growing categories online, with visits up 12% year on year in May. The fastest growing sub-categories within Entertainment are Multimedia and Photography. The Multimedia category is dominated by the popular video sharing website YouTube. YouTube's UK visits have risen more than seven-fold year on year in May 2007.

Hitwise data also reveals that YouTube is set to overtake BBC.co.uk within weeks based on share of UK internet visits. BBC.co.uk has been the top ranked Entertainment website for each week over the past two years and YouTube has held 2nd position since October 2006. Share of UK visits to BBC.co.uk continue to grow, up 13% year on year in May, however this is far outpaced by the increase for YouTube. YouTube?s share of UK visits were up nearly 7-fold (669%) year on year in May and up 140% in the past six-months. (TravelDailyNews, June 2007)

80% of the UK online population (age 15 or older who have accessed the internet from either a home or a work computer), initiated a video stream in April 2007, according to comScore. This compares to 76% in the US, 79% in France, and 70% in Germany.

The study also reported that the average UK streaming video viewer initiated 80 streams in April 2007, compared to 64 streams per streamer in France and 62 streams per streamer in Germany. By comparison the average streamer in the US initiated 65 streams per streamer in April 2007.

In the UK streamers allocated 10% of their total time online to viewing video.

comScore Europe believes that what is particularly striking is the fact that those consumers are accessing 16 to18 streams more, per month, than their counterparts in the US, France or Germany, perhaps indicating that the UK is further along the adoption curve in enjoying streamed video. The study also reported on the most popular streaming sites. Of the 1.98 billion streams that were initiated in the UK in April 2007, 38 percent or 608.1 million were initiated at Google Sites (which include YouTube.com). Rounding out the top 5 were Yahoo Sites, with 57.7 million streams, BBC Sites with 32.2 million streams, Fox Interactive Media with 26.1 million streams and Microsoft Sites with 17.3 million streams. (comScore, June 2007)

Search Engines and Searches

UK consumers are shunning generic internet searches, such as 'cheap flights' or 'broadband', in favour of searching for popular brands, according to Hitwise's "Managing Your Brand Online" report.

Hitwise believes that the growth of branded search in the UK offers threats as well as opportunities for brand owners and marketers.

82% of searches for the 2,000 most popular search terms in the UK during May 2008 were for branded terms, a figure that has increased from 65% in May 2005. The most searched-for term in the UK during May 2008 was 'facebook', which accounted for one in every 72 searches. (Hitwise UK Newsletter - August 2008)

Google search properties accounted for 87% of all UK searches for the four weeks ending May 31 2008, according to Hitwise. This represents a 12% increase compared to May 2007. By comparison, Yahoo! search properties accounted for 4.09% of UK searches in May 2008, a 2% increase compared to April 2008.

Percentage of UK Searches among leading search engine providers, May 2008:
- Google Properties: 87.30%
- Yahoo! Properties: 4.09%
- MSN Properties: 3.72%
- Ask Properties: 3.07%

Search engines continue to be the primary way for internet users to navigate key industry categories in the UK. Comparing May 2008 to May 2007, the Sports, Online Video and Social Networking categories showed double digit increases in their share of traffic coming directly from Google (10%, 25% and 32% respectively).

UK Category Upstream Traffic from Google - May 2008:
- Health and Medical: 34.01% (-2% compared to May 2007)
- Travel: 31.48% (+9%)
- Shopping and Classifieds: 26.73% (+8%)
- News and Media: 20.14% (+2%)
- Entertainment: 22.99% (+8%)
- Business and Finance: 24.21% (+3%)
- Sports: 18.42% (+10%)
- Online Video*: 25.44% (+25%)
- Social Networking & Forums: 23.86% (+32%)
All figures are based on UK internet usage

* denotes custom category
(TravelDailyNews, June 2008)

In June 2008, Google Sites slightly increased its lead as the most popular search property in the UK to 75.3% of all search queries, followed by eBay (5.5%), Yahoo! Sites (4.3%) and Microsoft Sites (3.4%), according to comScore.

AOL LLC's acquisition of UK social networking property, Bebo.com, expanded its share of search queries to 2.3%, edging Facebook.com (2.2%) into sixth place.

Other notable findings from June 2008 include:
- There were 3.9 billion total searches conducted in the UK during the month.
- 31 million UK internet users conducted at least one search.
- UK searchers conducted an average of 124 searches per searcher during the month, or 4.1 searches per day.
- UK searchers made a combined total of 937 billion visits to a search engine in May, with an average of 4.1 searches per visit.
(comScore, August 2008)

Last Updated on Wednesday, 03 February 2010 16:52