38 per cent of internet users use the net for 8.2 hours per week

Mumbai: Around 38 per cent of all internet users in India are 'heavy users' and on an average spend about 8.2 hours per week on the internet, according to the I-Cube 2006 report by the Internet And Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and IMRB International.

The report also revealed that the percentage of heavy internet users in India is rapidly increasing - from 16 per cent in 2001, to 20 per cent in 2004 and now to 38 per cent in 2006. Similarly, the percentage of light internet users has steadily declined from 63 per cent in 2001 to 28 per cent in 2006.

The study further states that school going kids spend an average of 322.3 minutes a week on the internet while those in college spend an average of 433.2 minutes a week. Older men spend an average of 580.5 minutes a week And among them working women spend an average 535.3 minutes, while the non-working women spend 334.5 minutes a week.

Fast facts Avg mins/week: Top 4 metros 547.7 minutes Other 4 metros 423.5 minutes Small metros 467.1 minutes Non metros 381 minutes       1.6 million school kids using the internet are heavy users averaging 322.3 minutes per /week     3.4 million college going students using the internet are heavy users averaging 433.2 minutes per /week

Explaining the trend towards rising internet usage in India, Dr Subho Ray, president, IAMAI, says, "The study has confirmed what we have believed for some time now consumers spend more time on the net than on any other media. This is food for thought for advertisers and media buyers."

The study also established that the average time spent on the internet in terms of minutes per week increased with the increasing age of the user. The active internet users exhibit a marked increase in internet usage as they graduate from school to college, and then onto their professional lives. The internet has surely stamped its presence in the urban Indian landscape.

Mohan Krishnan, vice president and general manager, IMRB International, says, "This trend is of great relevance. It leads us to the assumption that the internet has now penetrated beyond the communication needs of the active user population and is no longer an avenue for exploring their curiosity. The active user population has found greater and diverse uses beyond communication and this is where the opportunity lies for far greater growth and adoption.."

I-Cube 2006 covered around 65,000 individuals from 16,500 households surveyed in 26 cities with an additional coverage of 10,000 businesses and 250 cyber cafeé owners and is one the largest offline surveys of internet users in India.

*- Active Users in the cities covered in the survey (26 cities in 2006)

* - Active net users in the cities covered in the survey (26 cities in 2006)