20 Jan

Highest number of Internet Users in SA, EVER!

South Africa has passed the mark of 5-million Internet Users for the first time! This means that more that than 10% of the country’s population is surfing the net. This is the highest it has ever been.
World Wide Worx recently conducted a study named ‘Internet Access in South Africa 2010’, which found that the Internet User base grew with 15% in 2009, from 4,6 million in 2008 to 5,3 million last year. “The good news is that we will continue to see strong growth in 2010, and we should reach the 6-million mark by the end of the year,” says Arthur Goldstuck, MD of World Wide Worx.
“A sustained growth in Internet penetration is a key factor that will positively influence the economy of South Africa”, says Reshaad Sha, senior manager for Cisco Internet Business Solutions Group. “The varied range of application services and social networking platforms used by local consumers has fuelled the uptake that we see today.”
However, the growth rate has not always been this steep. From 2002 tot 2007, the percentage of Internet Users never rose above 7%. It was only from 2008, when the rate almost doubled that the numbers started accelerating.

Many thought that the installation of the new data cable on the coast of South Africa is the main reason for the growth in users, but World Wide Worx found that the granting of Electronic Communications Network Service licenses to more than 400 organizations was of even greater importance. Service providers that had to buy their network access from one of the major providers can now build their own networks or choose where they want to buy their access.

Reference: bizcommunity.com