ADSL users are making use of their always-on Internet connectivity to do more online, says Mark Buwalda, deputy chairman of the Online Publishers` Association (OPA).
Buwalda was reacting to the latest OPA readership figures released today, which show a 13.8% hike in local readership to 1.98 million readers or unique browsers and 97.37 million page impressions in the third quarter of 2005, compared to the second three months of this year. There is also an increase in the number of overseas visitors to local Web sites.
The OPA readership statistics are audited by the Nielsen//Netratings.
The total combined international and local readership of South African Web sites soared to record levels, with 5.38 million readers or unique browsers and 128.15 million page impressions for the third quarter of this year, according to the OPA.
About 76% of the online publishing industry`s page impressions were generated by local readership, it says.
"The cost of being online is no longer such a big issue for ADSL users, who find it easier to search for something online rather than reach for a reference book," says Buwalda, who is also MD of local search engine Ananzi.
MWEB, one of the country`s bigger Internet service providers, estimates there are about 100 000 ADSL users in SA.
According to demographics from Nielsen//Netratings` market intelligence sample base, as much as 14% of readers who log on to SA`s major Web sites hold executive/managerial positions.
The figures show that 20.8% of readers indicated they were professionals, followed by 16.4% of readers who indicated they were in clerical or administrative positions. Some 13.6% of readers indicated they were in executive/managerial positions; 8% were in a technical field; 7% were self-employed; 5% were in the education field; and a similar percentage were in sales. The demographics were extracted from a sample of 31 027 respondents.
Of the total demographics, 13% of readers indicated they were in the finance, insurance or real estate category. About 5% indicated they were in the communications industry, and 4.8% in the retail trade industry.
Comparative readership figures for the 24 OPA members are:
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