Where Are You Using Your Internet
by Nikkita Dixon
How much does the internet rule your life? Do you find yourself, phone in hand, updating your Facebook status at the dinner table? How about while you’re in a business meeting? Or how about on the toilet?
Surprising as it may sound, the ability to access online content at anytime, anywhere, is seeing the emergence of some pretty odd trends – especially among our young generation Ys. In a recent survey conducted by us here at iiNet, we found a high number of people are surfing the Internet in all sorts of places including ‘during a wedding’, ‘during a face to face conversation’ and yes – ‘on the toilet’. Not only are they doing it, they also find it completely acceptable for themselves and others to do so with 27 percent finding it quite acceptable to browse while at a business meeting or while ‘doing their business’.
Funnily enough, our internet users have also admitted to browsing the World Wide Web in places that aren’t so publicly acceptable. Fifteen percent of internet users owned up to surfing the ‘net while driving but just four percent believe it’s acceptable to do so. Similarly, many have reported using the internet to curb their boredom while eating dinner with friends or family or while on a date. Most however didn’t believe their internet usage was acceptable in either situation.
Luckily, in terms of internet usage, we appear to have our priorities in order with most preferring to check a news site or use Google as opposed to updating Facebook or checking email as their first port of call. Just 11 percent of generation y users feel the need to check their digital persona first thing in the morning. Fifty five percent prefer to instead access informative content via news channels or Google when they switch on their computers.
Contrary to popular belief it seems this generation of internet users are, for the majority, still using the internet as a source of information as opposed to a source of mindless chatter and social networking. Despite the barrage of books predicting the worse for our state of mind and ability to absorb information, Australians at least are still interested in informative online content – even if they’re accessing it from the comfort of the porcelain throne.