EUROBAROMETER

Eurobarometer 72.5. E-Communications Household Survey. Summary. Conducted by TNS Opinion Social at the request of Directorate General Information Society and Media Survey co-ordinated by Directorate General Communication

The fieldwork of this survey was carried out between 13 November and 9 December 2009. It is a follow up to surveys carried out in November 2007 - January 20081, November/December 20062 and December 2005/January 2006. This survey covers the 27 Member States of the European Union (EU27). The main themes addressed in this summary report are: 1) different types of telephone access available within the home, 2) Internet access within the home, 3) use of social networking sites, 4) television availability and the way in which the transmission is received, 5) uptake of communication packages. Almost every European household has access to a telephone (98%) and more households have access to a mobile phone (87%). Household access to a computer (64%) and the Internet (57%) continues to increase across Europe; however, access is far from equal across countries. Almost every EU household has access to a television (98%). More than three quarters of citizens (77%) are satisfied (either very or fairly) with the ease of use of e-com services and only 9% are dissatisfied (either not very or not at all). Whereas about two thirds (64%) are satisfied with the pricing schemes and total budget of e-com services and two out of ten are dissatisfied with these aspects. Respondents are marginally more satisfied with their ability to control the household’s expenditure, with 69% being satisfied. As with satisfaction, pricing and cost aspects of e-communications are perceived less favourably than ease of use and the offer of new services. Access to fixed telephone lines has improved overall since winter 2008, by three percentage points, to 73%. Portugal and Lithuania have demonstrated the most important increases, with 14 and 11 percentage point increases respectively. These evolutions mean that almost three quarters of citizens in the EU have at least one fixed telephone line. Access to mobile telephones has increased across the EU since winter 2008 by four percentage points, to an 87% penetration rate. Significant increases in access to mobile telephones since winter 2008 are visible across half of Europe. Overall, the average penetration of mobile telephone access only across the EU is unchanged since winter 2008, with a quarter of citizens still having mobile access only. However, access has increased in twenty countries since winter 2008 and declined in only six. Conversely, mobile only access declined most in Portugal (-7), Hungary (-6), France (-5) and Italy (-5). Mobile only access is greatest in the Czech Republic and Finland where about seven in ten only have mobile access. Access to mobile telephones only is lowest in Malta and Sweden, where respectively 5% and 1% of households have mobile access only. In these countries dual access dominates instead, with 94% and 80% respectively having access to both fixed and mobile telephones.About one in five EU households use the home PC to make calls over the Internet (22%), which is the same as winter 2008. About a third of EU citizens (35%) are using social networking websites and two thirds do not use them at all (63% "Never" use them or do not have Internet access). Social networking sites tend to be used frequently, with 57% of users visiting them at least two or three times a week, whereas, less than a quarter (23%) is using them once a week or a couple of times a month.