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Published: 26 October 2010

Every second Finn uses the Internet several times a day

Correction 26 October 2010 at 10 am. In the first table: Prevalence of Internet usage and certain purposes of use in 2010, corrections due to rounding of figures for percentage of population are indicated in red.

The use of the Internet is ever more widespread. Now as many as 86 per cent of Finns are Internet users. Email, Internet banking and information search on goods and services are the most common purposes of Internet use. Forty-two per cent of Finns are registered into social networks. Men use the Internet in more places than women and they use mobile devices for the connection more often.

Prevalence of Internet usage and certain purposes of use in 2010

	Percentage of population
	Used the Internet in the past 3 months	Uses the Internet usually several times a day	Used email in the past 3 months	Used Internet banking in the past 3 months	Searched information about goods or services in the past 3 months	Read online news, newspapers or newsmagazines in the past 3 months	Bought over the Internet in the past 3 months	Registered as a social network service user	Follows some social network service at least daily
Aged 16-24	99	76	91	72	80	92	46	83	67
Aged 25-34	100	78	96	98	94	92	64	76	60
Aged 35-44	96	65	89	91	85	85	58	44	25
Aged 45-54	93	53	79	83	81	74	42	29	12
Aged 55-64	75	43	61	66	60	61	25	15	5
Aged 65-74	43	19	35	36	33	35	9	5	2
Men	87	59	76	77	76	76	41	40	26
Women	85	54	78	76	71	73	42	43	30
Total	86	56	77	76	74	74	41	42	28

In older age groups the use of the Internet becomes fast widespread. The share of Internet users among 65 to 74-year-olds grew in one year by as much as ten percentage points to 43 per cent. In younger age groups almost everybody already uses the Internet.

The Internet is used not only more commonly but also more often. Of Finns, 72 per cent are on the web daily or almost daily. Daily usage becomes more widespread at all ages but fastest in older age groups. Internet usage is already so prevalent that it forms the majority of private computer use.

The things most commonly done online are connected to social relations, private finances, purchases and following of the mass media. In the survey on the use of information and communications technology the most common purpose of Internet use among those inquired is email, used by 77 per cent of the respondents in the past three months. Seventy-six per cent had used the Internet for banking transactions and nearly as many had searched information about services or goods (74%). Attending to matters with public authorities is also widespread on the web. Nearly every second had searched for information on public authorities' web pages and every third respondent had sent a filled-in form.

The mass media are also commonly followed via the web. For example, 74 per cent of Finns had read news from online news. The so-called social media and social networks are already in general use. In spring 2010, 42 per cent of Finns aged 16 to 74 had registered into some social network service (Facebook, Twitter, etc.). For the time being, those participating in social networks have mainly been younger web users. Two thirds of young people and young adults follow some social network service daily.

Internet usage is fairly similar for men and women, but with some differences. The most common ways and places or frequency of using the Internet are quite similar for both genders, also when examined by age group. Similarly, the shares of those having shopped online are of the same size for both men and women.

Men and women have, however, some different purposes of use. Women prefer looking for special information by browsing Internet pages or by using the web for social communication. Men's purposes of use are somewhat more diverse than women's. Male-dominated purposes of use are connected to downloading of files and purchasing and selling of products on online sales or auction sites for private purposes. When moving outside home, work or place of study, men use the Internet more often and in more places than women do. In addition, they use a mobile phone for Internet connections more often than women, or when outside home or workplace, a laptop.

No great changes have taken place in the frequency of purposes of Internet use over the year. Most purposes of use are now slightly more widespread, which is mainly a result of the growing use of the Internet in general.

Source: Statistics Finland

Inquiries: Rauli Kohvakka (09) 1734 3448, Perttu Melkas (09) 1734 2511, tietoyhteiskunta.info@stat.fi

Director in charge: Riitta Harala

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Updated 26.10.2010