Second BBVA Foundation study on the Internet in Spain

Meantime, 23% of Internet users had made some online purchase and 20% had concluded some kind of official transaction. For shoppers, goods and services related to travel were the most sought after items; firstly tickets (59%), followed by hotels/accommodation (26%) and organized holidays (22%).

The drawbacks mentioned to Internet use are many and varied. At the head come problems of IT security (mean of 7.1 on a scale from 0 to 10, where 0 means it is no problem at all and 10 that it is a very important problem), too many pages with illegal contents (7.0) and too much advertising (6.9). Data confidentiality and the receipt of unsolicited mail are also identified as problems by a majority of users, along with other issues that have more to do with network and provider quality (speed, unreliable connections, the cost of ISP and telephone services, with mean scores of close to 6 points on the above perceptions scale).

Users also appear to take for granted the fact that Internet is free of charge. Access to pay-for-use content is still confined to a very small number of consumers. And this limited experience of accessing pay content goes hand in hand with a very limited willingness to do so in future.

IMPACT OF THE INTERNET ON PRIVATE LIFE AND THE USE OF TIME

Users are generally enthusiastic about the benefits brought by the Internet in terms of time saving and improvements in their level of information and personal relations. In a context of intensive use of the web as an information and communication resource, a majority state that since using Internet, they feel better informed and have more contact with others.

Although most say there have been no changes in the way they divide their time since using the Internet, a sizeable percentage refer to spending less time on other matters. Specifically, a significant number say using the net has reduced the time they devote to watching television (27%), to going to the cinema (18%) and to reading in general or the reading of print newspapers (21% and 18% respectively). Finally, users admit to spending less time on work since they started with Internet.

The time Internet use takes away from other activities has grown significantly since the 2005 survey, with a higher percentage citing a decrease in the hours spent watching television, reading or practicing sport.