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By Ike Suarez, Correspondent
The number of Internet users in the Philippines
is estimated to reach an estimated 24 million Filipinos this year,
according to a statement by the Philippine chapter of the Business
Software Alliance, as it cited statistics released by the media and
market research firm, ACNielsen.
The BSA statement furnished reporters who
covered the trade association’s recent launch of its B4uSurf
Website at the Shangri-la Hotel in Makati City was intended to
educate youths, parents, teachers, and school administrators
on the concepts of IPR, cyber-ethics ,and cyber-safety.
The statement attributed the growth in the
number of Internet users to the growth in the number of cybercafes
in the Philippines and availability in the market of low-cost
computers.
However, no data was given on the number of such
cafes.
“These millions of Filipino Internet users
should be given enough information that will not only allow them to
maximize their use of the Internet, but also be able to protect
themselves from the apparent risks present in the Internet,” the
BSA statement said.
At the launch, BSA Asia Director for Anti-Piracy
Tarun Sawney said the availability of affordable computers meant
that the number of Internet computer users in the Philippines could
increase by 50 percent every two years, as he again cited ACNielsen
reports.
He noted that according to ACNielsen, there were
14 million Internet users in the Philippines in 2006, 7.82 million
in 2005, and 2 million in 2000.
He further quoted a report, the Young Filipino
Internet Report in 2007 saying that research, social networking, and
gaming are primary reasons why Filipino youths use the Internet.
The BSA event formed the Philippine leg of a
region-wide campaign to put up B4USurf sites in various countries.
Similar sites had been launched recently in Singapore, China,
Malaysia, and Taiwan.
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