Indonesia leads online growth in Southeast Asia : Yahoo Net Index Study 2010

Online usage jumped 26 per cent in Indonesia compared to 2009. This is mainly due to an increase of internet usage through mobile and accessing print materials online. Tier 2 cities are also ‘leapfrogging’ from home-access to mobile internet access.

Indonesia’s tariffs and 3G expansion play a key role in the growth. Social networking usage has also reached 77 per cent, growing 19 per cent from last year.

Vietnam separately sees an increase in online news reading and gaming. 97 per cent of respondents obtain news online through online newspapers, local news sites and internet portals. Social media usage on the other hand returns a lower percentage with online forums and communities taking 40 per cent and blogs 29 per cent.

Mobile internet usage in Vietnam is still low, but has already jumped 9 per cent since 2009 (totaling 19  per cent). Ho Chi Minh and Da Nang lead in the most usage of mobile internet.

Mobile internet has grown from zero to five per cent in the Philippines in 2010. Compared to 2009, using the internet to search for information has shown the highest growth (18 per cent) whereas search on entertainment images (62 per cent) and videos (52 per cent) are dominant.
 
The use of Facebook in the Philippines has increased 79 per cent. The main purpose of social media in the country is to network (53 per cent) and to access user generated content (30 per cent).

The Net Index Study highlights three main changes this year. First being that regional users are consuming more online media on the go. Secondly, increased user engagement in socal media, in terms of both contributing and distributing. Lastly, people are consuming large amounts of entertainment content including news, gossip and gaming information.

 “At a time of explosive internet growth and adoption in Southeast Asia, Yahoo is leading the industry in its commitment to equipping marketers with the insights necessary to tap into the massive opportunities available in this region,” said Ken Mandel, regional VP of advertising marketplace at Yahoo! Asia Pacific.

The annual Net Index Study examines internet usage trends in Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines. The index is a partnership between Yahoo, TNS, Nielsen and Synovate.