More children are online in the UK than in any other European country, according to a new study by internet research group Nielsen/NetRatings.

Thirteen million children across Europe use the internet, with three million joining the online community in the past 12 months.

Web use by UK under-18s grew by 58 per cent over the past year, compared with growth of only 27 per cent in the rest of Europe.

NetRatings European market analyst Tom Ewing told dotJournalism that the key factor has been the growth of broadband internet services.

"Broadband is much more established in Europe, but the transition from narrow band to broadband has only just happened in the UK - hence the massive surge in web use," he explained.

"In the UK, broadband is marketed as a family service. Parents are much more likely to allow kids to stay online for longer if they know they are not paying per minute."

Most children use the web for entertainment rather than education. Of the sites with the highest proportion of young readers, almost all provide games, ringtone downloads or entertainment news.

Nielsen/NetRatings provides research and statistics to online publishers and marketers, so the evidence that children are an increasingly significant readership online could trigger a more targeted wave of advertising and publishing.

"The BBC tries hard to provide for all age groups, and sites like Neopets.com are reliant on this age group," said Mr Ewing.

"But there are still not that many sites specifically for kids. This will definitely be a growth area."

NetRatings estimates that, based on current trends, there will be around 5.2 million kids online in the UK next year.

"It is likely that this growth will continue over the next 12 months, but will start to will die off after that."

See also:
http://www.nielsen-netratings.com
http://www.neopets.com

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