45 per cent of UK Internet users have accessed the mobile web

Rating: Latest statistic for UK national audit body, ONS

The UK’s Office for National Statistics (ONC) has just reported that almost half (45 per cent) of all Internet users have accessed the mobile web in 2011. The ONS opinions survey shows that 71 per cent of 16-24 year old Internet users accessed the Internet via a mobile, phone – the highest of any age group. This figure is up from 44 per cent in 2010. The group least likely to access the mobile web were (shock, horror) Net users aged 65 or over. We could never have predicted that, then.Far more useful stats from the ONS survey include the fact that (n 2011) 4.9 million people, or 13 per cent of Internet users, connected to wireless hotspots provided in public places such as restaurants, hotels or airports.

Sadly, the ONS doesn’t break this figure down into the proportion of those who used smartphones or wireless tablets as opposed notebook or laptop PC users to access public Wi-fi.

Still, this has almost doubled from last year when the number stood at 7 per cent. Other blatant obvious findings from the ONS include the fact that social networking is becoming ever more popular.

It found that, overall, 57 per cent of adult Internet users used online social networks in 2011, up from 43 per cent in 2010.

Significantly, 91 per cent of 16-24 year old Internet users now use social networking sites. The ONS didn’t say how many of these accessed social network sites from mobiles.
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A separate Labour Force survey showed the number of Net refuzniks. In Q2 2011 some 8.73 million of UK adults had never used the Internet.

This was actually a decrease of 12,000 people since Q1 2011. Can you guess the most likely age group to have never been online? No? OK, it was the over 75s (76.3 per cent).

More worrying, however, is that over one-third of disabled people (36.8 per cent) also say they have never been online, either.

For a full copy of the ONS Internet Access 2011 statistical report see here.