Online is Officially a UK Favourite Pastime!

Communicating via email, instant messaging and online networking communities are the some of the UK’s favorite ways of spending time relaxing online recent research has shown. In June alone, over 30million of us were online, spending somewhere in the region of 31.8billion minutes surfing the world wide web and using internet-related applications.

The biggest chunk of this time was taken up Instant messaging (12.7 per cent or 3.4 billion minutes), next was member communities visits (9.4 per cent or 2.6 billion minutes) and surprisingly email was in last place accounting for just 7.8% or 2.1 billions minutes online.

“The online sectors where Britons spend most of their time highlights the power of the internet as a tool to bring people closer together." Said Alex Burmaster, european internet analyst at research company Nielsen//NetRatings. "Whether it's communicating via instant messaging and email or networking in communities, the internet has an unrivalled ability to satisfy one of humankind's most basic needs – the need to connect."

The Top 10 categories in June accounting for the most time spent online in the UK are;

    1. Instant Messaging - 3.4 billions of minutes

    2. Member Communities - 2.6

    3. Email - 2.1

    4. Classifieds - 1.4

    5. Games - 1.3

    6. Software Manufacturers - 1.2

    7. Search - 1.1

    8. General Interest Portals & Communities - 1.0

    9. Multi-category Entertainment - 0.9

    10. Adult - 0.7

Source: Nielsen//NetRatings, NetView UK, home & work data, including applications, June 2007