Mexico's main internet gripes: slow connections, few choices

Slow connections and scant choice of providers are Mexicans' main barriers to access the internet, according to a study released this week by the country's internet association, as the Latin American country continues to show solid growth in numbers of internet users.

The study showed that 79.1mn Mexicans used the internet in 2017, compared to 70mn in 2016, a 12% increase. The figure accounts for 67% of people over the age of six.

Women are slightly more likely to use the web than men, accounting for 51% of users, while the south-central region of the country – home to densely populated Mexico City and surrounding Mexico and Morelos states – has the highest concentration of users, with 23% of all those connected.

The study, compiled from official data and responses to a survey of 1,873 Mexicans in April, showed that 50% of respondents said slow connections in their areas and scant choices of providers were their main obstacles to accessing the internet, followed by high costs (35%) and not knowing how to use it (31%).

An GSMA expert said recently that one of the largest ICT problems in Mexico is the gap in demand among those who still don't see the advantages of the internet."We asked people who don't use the internet why they don't use it," said Marco Galván, GSMA's strategic engagement head. The answer, he added, was generally "I don't know what it's for."

The country is one of the region's stragglers in terms of internet connectivity with 58.8 mobile broadband connections per 100 inhabitants and 12.7 fixed broadband connections per 100 inhabitants, according to the International Telecommunications Union (ITU).

THE WEB IS FOR NETWORKING

Social networks remain the favorite activity of Mexicans online, with 89% saying they access social networks. Email came in second at 84% and chat third at 83%. Facebook dominates the social network landscape, with 98% of participants saying they possess an account, followed by WhatsApp (91%) and YouTube (82%).Work-specific LinkedIn (32%) showed a 27% decline in users during the year.

Mexicans internet users spend an average of 3 hours and 28 minutes a day on social networks, of the full 8 hours and 12 minutes they say they spend online.

On the subject of where they connect, 86% of those surveyed said they connect to the internet at home, while 56% do so via Wi-Fi connections. The smartphone rules supreme as the preferred device for web surfing, as 89% choose to connect via their phones, with laptops coming in a distant second with 49%. Regarding ownership of devices, the poll points to the demise of the desktop, with 76% of people owning an smartphone versus 39% owning a desktop.