Big increase in regional online participation

Research conducted for the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) shows a huge jump in regional and rural mobile internet use since 2009.

The research shows a big increase in mobile phone internet use for the almost 40% of people who live outside of Australia’s six biggest capital cities. In communities with fewer than 1000 people, 1 in 3 adults went online using their mobile phone during December 2013, compared to just 1 in 20, four years earlier.

Australia-wide, mobile phone internet use by adults has increased from 10% in December 2009 to 46% during December 2013.

Other findings from the ‘Regional Australia in the digital economy research snapshot’ include:

• More people in communities with fewer than 1000 people are going online at multiple locations, with 18% of adult internet users in these communities going online from three or more separate locations such as home, work, school, the library or a wireless hot spot as at December 2013 compared to 12% at December 2009.
• 46% of adult internet users in communities with fewer than 1000 people went online more than once a day at December 2013 compared with 33% at June 2009.

Across all regions, nearly six in 10 adult internet users in communities with fewer than 1000 people undertook five or more separate activities online during December 2013 compared to three in 10 during December 2009.

Image courtesy Robert Scoble under CC