Mexico: Internet Access and Usage Patterns

In order to understand the trends and nuances of Internet usage in Mexico, it is important to know a few of the technical statistics of current Internet usage. As of 2007, there are 22.7 million Internet users over the age of 6 in Mexico, this accounts for 24.6% of the population above the age of 6.  This number grew steadily by 5 million since 2005. This steady rate of growth is a positive sign, but at the current rate it would take at least another 30 years for the entire population to have access. It is also interesting to note that 83% of current Internet users are under the age of 35, which means that the demographics of Internet users in Mexico are severely lopsided towards younger people. One of the problems is that many older people who don’t have regular access to a computer think than they can never learn how to use one (just ask my grandfather).  The following graph shows a few of the key statistics needed to understand the current situation of Internet penetration in Mexico.

As is made clear above, 46% of Internet users in Mexico are students, and therefore it makes sense that a larger percentage of Internet users in Mexico are men (54%), since there is a deficit of female students in schools. Trends like these are more interesting than simple usage statistics, and although it is important to note some of the above statistics in order to have some perspective, the most interesting aspect of Internet usage in Mexico is exactly how people are using the Internet.

            A 2007 survey by AMIPCI shows some very interesting trends in Mexican Internet usage. When asked if they had a Personal Webpage, 57% of Mexicans responded with a yes, and 34% of those who said yes also said that their Webpage is on Myspace compared to just 4% who said that their Webpage is on Facebook. The US showed similar trends earlier on, but the gap between Facebook and Myspace is no longer that extreme. It will be interesting to see if Mexico follows the same trend as the US, which would suggest a delayed mimicking pattern between Mexican Internet users and US Internet users. Not surprisingly, 85% of Internet users said that the search engine that they use most frequently is Google. Also, 92 % of users consider the Internet indispensable, which is more than the declared indispensability of Television and Radio combined. Even if Internet penetration is not yet at a level where it can be effectively used as a governance tool, most Internet users recognize the importance of the Internet as a communication device. Around 67% of Mexican Internet users use instant messaging daily, and 96% of them do it through MSN messenger. Through out Latin America MSN messenger tends to be the instant messaging application of choice, but it is interesting to see the degree to which it dominates the Mexican market. Also interesting to note is the sudden popularity of voice over IP technology, 35% of Internet users have used Skype or other VOIP devices.  This is especially interesting for Mexico because of the monopoly status of Telmex. VOIP may provide a much cheaper alternative to Mexican Internet users, but the odd thing is that most people who have access to the Internet do it through Telmex anyway.   Another interesting find is that 55% of users play games online, of course with varying levels of commitment, but the figure still seems high. Again, this may be a reflection of the lopsided age distribution of Internet users.

From the above data we can conclude that the average Internet user in Mexico is a young student or worker who uses the Internet often for both work and socializing, who has MSN installed on his/her computer and uses it often, and who has come to depend on the Internet quite heavily. This is a good sign that younger generations are being exposed to the Internet and that future generations will grow up with Internet access,  but it is a problem that so many older people (many of which could probably afford internet) don’t access the internet. Government initiatives and NPO’s should focus on closing the massive generational gap that exists within internet users.