MOSCOW, March 29 (Itar-Tass) — RF Regions continue to make the main contribution to the growth of the Russian Internet audience - their share in 2011 accounted for 93 percent of new users. These data are presented in a study published by Russia’s largest Internet company Yandex on Thursday.
According to the Yandex data, last year’s audience of the World Wide Web in the regions of the Russian Federation grew by 20 percent. “The Internet is most actively spread in the villages: the web audience there increased by 33 percent for the year,” it is said in the company’s study. “For comparison, the growth in the capitals was a mere 6 percent.” The highest growth rates have been registered in the Far Eastern District, and the lowest – the North-West District. However, in terms of Internet penetration Moscow and St. Petersburg, according to the study, are still in the lead by a wide margin, and villages and towns with a population of up to 100 thousand lag behind the Russian average level.
Yandex also noted that the Internet access speed is growing every year, and the cost is reduced. For example, in 2011 the average cost of Internet access in the regions, according to the company, declined by an average of 60 percent. Residents of the Far Eastern District pay the highest price, and the Central District residents – the smallest.
The mobile Internet audience, according to the researchers, is growing twice as fast as the Internet audience in general. “In January 2012, mobile devices for connection to the Internet were used by more than 22 percent of all residents of Russian cities with populations of over 100 thousand,” the Yandex study materials say.