Internet penetration on rise in Azerbaijan

By Nigar Orujova

The number of internet users in Azerbaijan is increasing annually. Now the country stands at 63rd place in the world in terms of the number of Internet user, according to the International Telecommunication Union report.

In a similar ranking among developing countries, Azerbaijan stands at 24th place.

Over the past five years, the information technology sector of Azerbaijan has increased two times, Deputy Communications and High Technology Minister Iltimas Mammadov said earlier.

Last year, Azerbaijan achieved a great success in ICT sector.

During 2013, the companies operating in the ICT sector generated value amounting to 920.1 million manats, which was 6.8 percent more than the same period in 2012.

Mammadov said the average annual growth rate of IT was 17 percent. However, to implement the measures envisaged in the concept "Azerbaijan 2020: Vision for the Future" it is required to increase the ICT sector 4-4.5 times in the next 10 years.

The country aims to gain $8-8.5 billion from the information and communication technologies sector in 2020.

Currently, some 70 percent of the population uses the Internet. The broadband Internet penetration among the population stands at 50 percent.

Moreover, Azerbaijan holds the 23th place among developing countries on the share of Internet-connected households.

Last year, 51.5 percent of households in Azerbaijan were connected to Internet. The first place went to South Korea with 98.1 percent of connected households.

The Land of Fire occupies the 48th place in terms of the number of fixed broadband connections per 100 inhabitants, being ahead of Russia that stays at 50th place and Turkey at 69th place.

The ITU report predicts that more than 50 percent of the world population will be connected to the Internet with the help of mobile broadband communications using smartphones and tablets in 2017.

The mobile phone penetration in the country stays at the level of 110 percent, thanks to its three main mobile operators. The number of mobile broadband connections in Azerbaijan is 43.9 per 100 people, and on this basis, the country stands at 46th place in the world.

/AzerNews/