At least 88 percent of Internet surfers in Guangzhou do so from home, while only 3.2 percent use Internet cafes. The figures emerge from a survey by the Guangzhou municipal government on how city residents obtain the bulk of their information. At a news conference to publicize the results of the survey, it was also stated that while 25.4 percent of respondents surfed the net from their offices, the rate for university students logging onto the Internet from their campuses was only 6.3 percent.

Launched in April, the survey covered 10,000 households, focusing on the number of families with computers and how they used the Internet. Compared with a similar survey at the end of 2000, the proportion of people surfing at home showed a rapid increase, with a corresponding drop in those doing so from offices, campuses and Internet cafes. In other words, the home has now become the main place where citizens obtain information via the Internet, and the personal computer has become a major tool for obtaining information.

Over 60% Citizens Own Computers

The survey showed over 60 percent of Guangzhou citizens have personal computers, an increase of 18.3 percent compared with 2000; and in about 34.7 percent of families in Guangzhou, there is at least one member used to surfing on the Internet, an increase of 13.1 percent; citizens who prefer the Internet to other sources stood at 15.3 percent, an increase of 11.5 percent compared with 2000.

It can be shown that whether in terms of the status of computer-ownership, or computer-application or regarding the number of on-line population or Internet-wired households, Guangzhou City achieved an increase rate of over 10 percent.

Surfers Range from Youngsters to the Elderly

As far as the age of surfers is concerned, an extension at both ends has become a new characteristic. In this survey, among surfing netizens in Guangzhou, the youngest is only five years old, one year younger than the youngest child recorded in the previous survey; and the oldest is 85, three years older than the oldest in the previous survey. The average age for netizens in Guangzhou is 29.9-year-old, an increase of 0.7 years from the previous year; over 80 percent of netizens are aged below 40, and the youngsters under 18 take up 14.2 percent of the total.

The Proportion of Women Netizens Increased

This survey also shows that the proportion of women netizens increased as well 42.1 percent against 57.9 percent for men. In the previous survey, the female total was 40.9 percent. Of male citizens, about 17.8 percent surf on the Internet, while 12.6 percent of women citizens surf on the Internet. Compared with the latest survey conducted by CNNIC, the proportion of women netizens in Guangzhou is slightly bigger than the national average of 40 percent.

7.44 Hours on Internet Per Week on Average

The survey suggests that Guangzhou sees a prominent increase regarding the time spent on the Internet by Guangzhou citizens, and the average time duration is about 7.44 hours per week, a 28.3 percent increase compared with the previous percentage.

Over 70 Percent of Netizens Never Visit Government Websites

According to the survey, only 30.3 percent of netizens said that they had visited government websites at least once. Generally speaking, those who have better academic background or higher income and those who are comparatively old are more likely to visit government websites. Besides, people with their own careers are more interested in visiting government websites compared with college students or people without a specific job to serve; meanwhile, usually, there are more men than women who are used to visiting government sites.

Young People Aged from 25 to 30 Prefer Online-shopping

About 10.4 percent of netizens have tried on-line shopping or e-commerce services. Women are more interested in on-line shopping; Those with higher educational background or higher income are more likely to buy via the Internet. One more thing to note in this regard is that it is always young people aged from 25 to 30 who can most easily accept online shopping style or online services.

Youngsters Like to Receive Education via Internet

The survey also shows that about 31.3 percent of netizens once received online education; and it is usually youngsters below 18 who have more chances; students enjoy a higher percentage in receiving online-education than others; at the same time, it's difficult to find any trends in terms of the impact that personal income could have on online-education.

(china.org.cn by Feng Shu, July 19, 2002)