OT # of online users and some on aol, from newsbytes.com
Study Puts US Online Population At 62 Million
"****Study Puts US Online Population At 62 Million 02/06/98 AUSTIN, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1998 FEB 6 (NB) -- By Bill Pietrucha, Newsbytes. America's love affair with the Internet continues to grow, as more than 62 million US adults went online in the fourth quarter of 1997, according to a recent study by the IntelliQuest Information Group Inc. [NASDAQ:IQST]. That number, representing 30 percent of the US population age 16 and older, increased by almost a third again from the 46.8 million users IntelliQuest reported for the same period in 1996.
According to IntelliQuest spokesperson Ursula Tally, the study was conducted by IntelliQuest's Worldwide Internet/Online Tracking Service (WWITS), which uses a random-digit dial (RDD) methodology to develop projectable estimates of both user and non-user populations. The company claims the study has a sampling reliability of +/-1.5 percent.
According to the study, online population growth will continue to remain strong, with seven million adults reporting plans to go online within the next six months. If these people follow through with their intentions, the report notes, the number of wired US residents could approach 70 million by mid-1998, doubling the online population from when IntelliQuest began studying the medium in the second quarter of 1996.
The fourth quarter 1998 figures also marked the first time that Internet/online services users accounted for more than half of computer users, compared to only 40 percent last year, the study showed.
"The Internet/PC user percentage is expected to continue to increase as the Internet continues to be integrated into everyday life activities, such as communication, shopping, and information retrieval," the report notes.
The study, however, found that the online services, such as CompuServe and America Online, have dropped in popularity among new users. While 70 percent of users first accessed through an online service, in the fourth quarter of 1996, the survey found that number dropped to 61 percent in the last quarter of 1997. When asked what type of provider they would prefer, the survey found that users' and intenders' first choice of providers was an Internet service provider (ISP), followed by their local telephone company, and then a commercial online service.
The survey found that the home continues to be the most popular access location, with nearly 70 percent of users accessing from their homes, although some 46 percent of the online population reported that they access from work at least some of the time. The most popular activities online include sending and receiving e-mail, obtaining information about hobbies, gathering information on products, and/or accessing general news. According to the survey, nearly half of all users attempt ten or more activities online while spending at least five hours per week online.
Nearly 25 percent, or some 15 million, of the current online population first began accessing the Internet in 1997, the study found, reflecting a growth in usage by "middle America," generally consisting of older age groups, less highly educated and less frequently from the upper income groups typical of users who have been online for several year.
And although online purchasing remained relatively stable in overall numbers, 17 percent in the fourth quarter of 1997, against 15 percent in the same 1996 period, the actual number of online purchasers has increased by 3.5 million over the past year. Dollar values of purchases also increased, according to the survey, with a median of $100 spent online in the last 30 days of 1997, compared to $40 one year ago.
The survey found the Internet, however, still is more "window shopping" than purchasing, with 60 percent shopping online, but only 17 percent purchasing online. The most popular shopping activities include finding information about a product's price or features, checking on product selection, and determining where to purchase a product. "
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