There are more than five million Internet users in South Africa, bringing penetration to 10 percent, according to research released by World Wide Worx on Thursday.
The study, jointly sponsored by Cisco, found that the figure of 5,3 million users is up from 4,6 million in 2008.
"The good news is that we will continue to see strong growth in 2010, and we should reach the six million mark by the end of the year,” said Goldstuck.
Continues Below↓"A sustained growth in Internet penetration is a key factor that will positively influence the economy of South Africa", Reshaad Sha, senior manager for Cisco Internet Business Solutions Group was quoted as saying in a statement.
"The varied range of application services and social networking platforms used by local consumers has fuelled the uptake that we see today."
Between 2002 and 2007, user percentages hovered around the seven percent mark, but this accelerated in 2008.
A new undersea cable on the South African coast was only one of a range of factors behind the growth, as was the granting of Electronic Communications Network Service licences to more than 400 organisations, and the uptake of broadband connectivity by small and medium enterprises.
High speed connectivity is expected to grow more widely during 2010.
According to Internet World Stats, penetration for Africa is 6,8 percent, for Europe 52 percent and for the US 74 percent. - Sapa
