Asia-Pacific to Outpace U.S. Web Usage Within 5 Yrs.
Last updated: 11 Jan 2001 21:29 GMT (Reuters)
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Internet users in the Asia-Pacific region will outpace the United States within less than five years, according to Jupiter Media Metrix in a report released Thursday.
The research firm sees Asia-Pacific comprising as much as one-third of all Internet consumers worldwide in 2005.
In Latin America, Internet users are expected to almost double in size to eight percent of the world's Internet user population in 2005 from five percent in 2000 amid increased PC penetration and improvements in telecommunications infrastructure and reform in those regions.
"While it is imperative for sites to gain foothold in these markets, they need to avoid a 'must build' mentality, and enter these markets through strategic partnerships such as joint ventures and franchises," said Preston Dodd, senior analyst at Jupiter, in a statement.
Jupiter predicts that the U.S. share of the global Internet population will drop from 36 percent at present to about 24 percent in 2005. However, about two-thirds of U.S. companies have not yet prepared for a global online marketplace, according to a Jupiter survey of the top 20 web sites within five categories.
Internet market leaders such as America Online Inc. AOL.N , Yahoo Inc. YHOO.O and Microsoft Corp. MSFT.O have been aggressively trying to gain market share abroad -- especially as the U.S. dial-up market matures.
Although American companies are beginning to venture into smaller, secondary markets, such as France and Italy, expansion into primary global markets such as Germany and the United Kingdom, remains low.
Jupiter advises U.S. companies to align with local companies in each global operation market to gain a better understanding of local customers' preferences, local customs and business practices, brands and fulfillment.
The research firm also advises that companies translate welcome pages for international visitors and register local domain names.
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