The Hindu Business Line : Internet trends

TO the users of Internet, it is absolutely impossible to think of life without it. Reams have been written and billions of bytes spewed out on its pervasive and powerful influence. Because of its addictive nature, netaholism has become more disturbing than alcoholism. As such, an overview of the trends may be of interest.

The number of persons all over the world with access to Internet through personal computers at home has registered a sharp increase from 498.2 million in the last quarter of 2001 to 531.3 million in the first quarter of this year.

Internet users in India, currently touching 10 million, are expected to cross 40 million by 2005. Already, according to an estimate, it is financially affordable to 100 million or more. Among the factors against a veritable explosion in use are a psychological inhibition against going for it whole hog, erratic functioning of telecom facilities, and the inability of service providers to cope with the demand.

Inevitably, the phenomenon has spawned surveys on the uses to which it is put. The Global Internet Trends report of the Nielson/Net Ratings for the first quarter of 2002 contains the interesting statistical nugget that sending and receiving e-mail is the dominant online activity in 12 countries. "Of all popular Internet applications," it says, "e-mail is the global activity of choice".

It is the number one preoccupation of fully 75 per cent of the households with Internet connection and of an incredible 90 per cent of adults in the three markets of Australia, the Netherlands and the UK. Hong Kong is a close second with 84 per cent of those aged 16 and above making a beeline for it.

Chat rooms are a poor cousin compared to e-mail. Only 30 per cent in all countries participate in online chats, although the percentages are better in Brazil (41) and Spain (38). In India, a typical surfer is pictured as a college student in the 18-25 age group with e-mail, chat rooms, career searches and exploring new sites as his/her top four online preferences. Of late, porn sites are threatening to elbow out the rest whenever the parents, guardians of the law and strangers are not looking.

OK, does the Internet contribute to bringing people together or keeping them apart? The instant answer of most people would be, "Of course, it erases all differences of nationality, colour or creed. Anyone can get in touch with anyone else anywhere in the world in a jiffy and strike a mutually enjoyable, if not profitable, relationship. Web sites and portals summon a universe of data and information at the click of a mouse. Internet is truly a synthesiser and catalyser."

Columnist Thomas L. Friedman, however, disagrees. Writing in the New York Times, he expresses the view that its role as a unifier and a promoter of transparency and knowledge society has been over-rated. In an article, `Global Village Idiocy', he says: "Internet, at its ugliest, is just an open sewer, an electronic conduit for untreated, unfiltered information". Takers, anyone?

B. S. Raghavan

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