ON THE ‘HOME’ PAGE... 90% OF US SURF THE NET DAILY

THE pandemic has turned us into a nation of internet addicts – with almost nine out of ten people online every day.

And almost a third are surfing the web ‘nearly all the time’, the Central Statistics Office has found, with the numbers shopping for food and drink online more than doubling from 6% in January to 13%.

Unsurprisingly, the number of people buying tickets online for cultural or other events such as going to the cinema, concerts and fairs dropped to 23% in March, compared with 39% in January.

The survey of 12,000 people also found that online shopping for toothbrushes, washing detergents and other ‘personal hygiene products’ doubled in March to 10% of internet users, from 5% at the beginning of the year.

Live online lessons have ballooned, too, as communicating with instructors or students on the web nearly doubled in March to 13%, compared with just 7% in January. However, the surge in internet usage has led to warnings over the increased risk of online scams.

Alex Cooney, of Cybersafe Ireland, said people were online a lot more during lockdown, which was presenting its own problems.

‘If you’re going to be online longer then the opportunity is greater. We’ve tried to do some awareness-raising around scams and so on,’ she added.

CSO statistician Maureen Delamere said that the lockdown ‘has changed Irish life’.

‘The changes have impacted in the way people are doing their shopping and what they are buying.

‘Clothes and sports goods, which were usually the most popular online purchase, have decreased in March while the purchase of food or drink from shops or meal-kit providers has doubled from 6% in January to 13% of internet users in March.’

Of internet users surveyed in March one in six (16%) had purchased furniture, home accessories or gardening products online.

With an increase in remote work and home-schooling, there has also been a rise in internet voice or video calls, on popular platforms such as Skype or Zoom.

Nearly three-quarters (74%) of people used this method of communication in March.

David Fitzsimons, head of Retail Excellence, said online shopping would lead to the decline of traditional shopping streets as more people work from home instead of commuting into offices.

‘Home-working is going to happen forever, so urban areas – Henry Street, Grafton Street – they’re going to see a reduction in footfall of 20% or 30% forever,’ he said.

And he believes the way people shop in future will change, too.

‘The beauty hall in Brown Thomas... the scent, the service, it’s poetry to your eyes and your nose. So that’s all gone.

‘We’re going to ban touching products in certain cases,’ he said.

‘Home-working will be forever’