Australia continues strong consumer PC, Net growth
- — 30 August, 2000 15:09
The number of households with PCs in Australia has risen 18 percent in the past year, and home Internet access has grown 53 per cent in the same period, according to ABS.
The figures, combined with estimates of PC use in companies, indicate that Australia remains a leading technology market in the fast-growing Asia Pacific region (excluding Japan).
The number of adults using the Internet for buying purposes rose 23.3 per cent to 802,000, or 6 per cent of the adult population, ABS said.
In absolute terms, China is easily the biggest PC market in the region and this month overtook Australia in Internet use with an estimated 9 million users, according to figures from researcher IDC.
But Australia -- combining home and corporate use -- comes closest to matching the US figure of one PC for every 1.5 citizens. The figure in Australia is now close to one PC for every 2 citizens, ahead of Singapore (2.5), New Zealand (3), Hong Kong (4), Korea (6) and Taiwan (7), according to IDC.
Other regional countries are way behind, including the large-country trio of India (one PC per 352 people), Indonesia (132) and China (86).
Australia remains the largest market by value for electronic commerce in the region and is expected to maintain that position for the next few years, according to IDC.
IDC is owned by International Data Group, publisher of Australian PC World.
