Analytics, Estonia, EU – Baltic States, Internet, Markets and Companies, Technology

Compared to the same period of 2014, the share of households with an Internet connection has increased by 5 percentage points. Practically all households with children (99%) and more than three-quarters of households without children (86%) had access to the Internet at home. Households without an Internet connection at home cited lack of interest (70%), and approximately a quarter of the households mentioned the lack of skills (25%) and high equipment costs (25%) as the main reasons for not having an Internet connection.

In the 1st quarter of 2015, the most widely used (77%) type of Internet connection was still a fixed broadband connection (wired or wireless). In recent years, there has been an increase in the use of mobile Internet: while in 2012 two households out of ten had a mobile internet connection at home, then in 2015 – a half of the households.

In the 1st quarter of 2015, the share of persons aged 16–74 who had used a computer and the Internet amounted to 88%, which is four percentage points more than in the same period of the previous year. Compared to females, the share of Internet use is three percentage points higher among males. By age group, using the Internet is more popular among younger age groups. Compared to the same period of the previous year, in the 1st quarter of 2015 the share of Internet users increased the most among 65–74-year-olds (10 percentage points), amounting to 54%. The digital gap between the youngest and the oldest age group decreased from 55% to 46%.

The most common Internet activities among 16–74-year-old Internet users were: using Internet banking services (91%), reading newspapers and magazines (91%), using e-mail (89%) and seeking information about products and services (85%).

Among 16–74-year-old computer users, 65% have used word processing software (e.g. Microsoft Word), 54% have used spreadsheet software (e.g. Microsoft Excel), and 51% have installed software or applications.

The share of 16–74-year-olds who had bought/ordered products or services online in the last 12 months amounted to 59%, having increased 10 percentage points compared to the previous year. The products and services purchased online the most were: travel and accommodation services (60% of the users of e-commerce), tickets for concerts, cinema, theatre and other events (57%), and clothes or sports equipment (52%). 85% of 16–74-year-old users of e-commerce bought/ordered a product or service from Estonian sellers, 44% from European Union sellers (excl. Estonia), and 35% from sellers of other countries (excl. the European Union).

Among Estonian enterprises with 10 or more persons employed, the share of enterprises using computers every day is 98% and the share of those using the Internet is 97%. The predominant type of Internet connection is broadband Internet, but 70% of the enterprises also use mobile Internet for work purposes. The speed of Internet connections used has increased year by year and in the 1st quarter of 2015 three-quarters of enterprises using broadband Internet had a connection with the fastest download speed (over 10 Mbit/s). More than three-quarters of enterprises with 10 or more persons employed have a website which is mainly used for presenting products or services. 19% of enterprises provide online ordering on their website.

The use of social networking sites has become increasingly popular – 31% of enterprises have an account, a user profile, or a user license in social networks like Facebook or LinkedIn, which are used as a marketing channel.

Statistics Estonia studies the use of information technology in households and among persons aged 16–74 in the 2nd quarter of each year (in 2005–2013 it was studied as part of the Labour Force Survey, since 2014 with an independent survey). A household is a group of persons who live at the same address and share joint financial resources, and whose members consider themselves to be members of one household, while a family is based on family relationships or kinship.

Statistics Estonia has surveyed the use of information technology in enterprises since 2001. In 2015, approximately 3,000 enterprises participated in the survey. The survey involves enterprises with 10 or more persons employed.

The use of information technology in households, by individuals aged 16–74, and in enterprises is studied by statistical organisations in all the Member States of the European Union on the basis of a harmonised methodology.