2. Internet use

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More people out of work with time on their hands. More using the internet to find jobs. Greater use of social media sites. And, of course, more broadband subscribers.

All these factors have resulted in Irish people spending more time online. In 2009, the average internet user was online for 13.2 hours a week, compared with 10 hours a week the previous year, according to the latest ComReg data. The profile of the heavy users offers few surprises – they’re more likely to be younger, students and Dublin-based.

Meanwhile, despite the recession there is still considerable demand for broadband. Newly published figures for the final quarter of 2009 show the total number of broadband subscribers at 1.44 million, a 20% increase year-on-year. Mobile subscribers are the fastest-growing category, accounting for 467,000 subscribers, an increase of 51% on 2008 levels.

Sources: ComReg Consumer ICT Survey conducted by Millward Brown Lansdowne, December 2009 – January 2010. Based on a sample of 1,003 adults aged 15-74

Broadband: ComReg Quarterly Key Data Report, March 2010. Green line shows all platforms, with the exception of mobile, while the orange line includes mobile broadband

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