Net holdouts

A new European Union report, which was published on Wednesday, found that 24 percent – over a 100 million people - have never gone online.

The study, was conducted by Eurostat, the EU's statistical agency,  surveyed 16-to-74-year-olds and their Internet usage across the 27-nation bloc.

"For many people today it seems difficult to live without the Internet,” Eurostat said in a statement. "However a decreasing, but still non-negligible, part of the EU population has never used it."

Men were slightly more likely to use the Internet more regularly, the survey suggested, with three-quarters logging on once a week, compared to 65 percent of women.

Growing online gap

The report also suggests that an Internet gap is growing between the continent's wealthier north and poorer south.

Romania topped the list of net-holdouts, with 54 percent of its citizens never having accessed the Internet – whether at home, in an Internet café or over a smart phone.

It was joined by Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus and Portugal where just under half of the populations do not have Internet access at home.

On the other end of the scale, Sweden had the most Internet users, with just five percent saying they had never used the Internet. Other nations in the top tier include Luxembourg, Sweden and Denmark, all with access rates of 90 percent and above.

Figures 'no surprise,' Estonian Internet guru says

Experts say the figures underline the differing needs of citizens in EU countries amid ageing populations. 

"It's no surprise," wrote Linnar Viik, a former director of product development at Skype and often called the father of the Estonian Internet, in an e-mail sent to Deutsche Welle.

"If you take a look at social structures in different countries, you see that there is no real need or demand in especially elderly segments of society for any electronic services. Local communities can survive quite well with a past century approach."

At the same time, Viik, who is now the rector of the Estonian IT College, said the new figures showed that Internet users "are the new gravity center of society." But, he added, the report also provided valuable lessons for policymakers.

"Whatever new public services you design, keep in mind also the fact that a quarter of society have never used (and probably will never use) the Internet," he noted.

Internet access linked to literacy

Some experts also point out that the figures highlight the hurdles in expanding high-speed broadband networks across the bloc.

Amelia Andersdotter, a Swedish member of the European Parliament, and the youngest member of the legislative body, said the European Commission is already investing 1.2 billion euros ($1.56 billion) for the coming five years in infrastructural investments.

"But there is still much lacking in the implementation at a member state level. In many member states what is lacking is political will," Andersdotter wrote Deutsche Welle in an e-mail.

She also suggested that lower Internet penetration in countries in southern Europe is linked to literacy levels.

"If you look at a country like Romania or Bulgaria, for instance, a comparatively large portion of the population doesn't finish secondary education," Andersdotter, who is a member of the Swedish Pirate Party, added. "As long as illiteracy remains a problem, obviously Internet access is not a priority to those people."

Britain tops e-commerce use

The report also found that those countries with the lowest Internet usage rates also tend to have the least number of fixed-line broadband connections and make the least use of e-commerce.

Britain, the EU's third-largest economy, led the way in buying and offering goods and services online. Some 82 percent of its Internet users said they made online purchases over the past year compared with an EU-wide average of 58 percent.

The lowest rates, once again, were recorded in Bulgaria and Romania, with just 13 percent of those surveyed saying they had ordered goods or services over the net.

Author: Sonia Phalnikar
Editor: Cyrus Farivar