Internet crosses 4 billion users

Hootsuite and We Are Social have reported on social media and digital trends around the world in an annual report. Digital in 2018 considers 239 countries and territories, and estimates that the number of internet users in the world has now surpassed the 4 billion mark, putting more than half the global population online (53 per cent of the world’s population).

In the UK, 95 per cent of the population now uses the internet, an increase of 5 per cent compared to the previous year.

Social media of one type or another now connects 3.2 billion active users online and has grown by 13 per cent in the last 12 months. Social media users grew by 5 per cent in the UK in past year, now accounting for almost two-thirds of the population.

Even faster growing is the use of mobile, with a 14 per cent year over year increase to 2.958 billion users.

"With four billion people now online, connectivity is already a way of life for most of us. However, as internet companies strive to serve the next billion users, we'll see important changes in digital over the coming months. Audio-visual content will take priority over text - especially in social media and messaging apps - while voice commands and cameras will replace keyboards as our primary means of input. Social relationships and online communities will evolve to accommodate these new ways for people to interact with each other. This will result in rich new experiences for all of us, but businesses need to start preparing for these changes today," said Simon Kemp, global consultant, We Are Social.

Full report here.

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