MUMBAI: Nearly 75 per cent or 204.3 million Americans have access to the Internet from home. The data was provided by Nielsen//NetRatings. The organisation measures and analyses the Internet audience.
 

Nielsen//NetRatings director of strategic analysis Kenneth Cassar said, "In just a handful of years, online access has managed to gain the type of traction that took other mediums decades to achieve."

Nielsen//NetRatings also reported that women represent a higher proportion of Web surfers with 82 per cent or 34.6 million women between the ages of 35-54 accessing the Internet at home. Men in this age group posted an 80 per cent access penetration rate, accounting for nearly 32.4 million surfers. 72 per cent of females in the 25-34 age group are Web surfers, while 75.6 per cent of males in this age bracket have Internet access.

"Women make the majority of purchases and household decisions. So it is no surprise that they are utilising the Internet as a tool for daily living" Cassar added.

The Internet access penetration rates are based on the Nielsen//NetRatings February 2004 monthly enumeration study, collected through random-digit dial phone survey. Internet access penetration is defined as the per cent of people who have access to the Internet, but not necessarily logging online during a specific timeframe.