Internet Use Doubles in 18 Months

Nearly one-fourth of adults in the United States and Canada are now using the Internet, says a survey by CommerceNet and Nielsen Media Research in December and January. The survey revealed a dramatic increase in the number of women users and people looking for information on products and services.

Twenty-three percent of people 16 and older use the Internet, compared with only 10 percent in the fall of 1995. That figure translates to 50.6 million people using the Internet in the U.S. and Canada, more than double the number of people in the 1995 survey.

Women, who made up only 10 percent of those online five years ago, have just about caught up to the number of men online. Forty-two percent of online women are users, up from 34 percent 18 months ago. The number of users who look to the Web for product information has also doubled to 39 percent, up from 19 percent in the 1995 survey.