South Africans are reading fewer newspapers and magazines and watching less television because they’re opting instead to spend more time online.

This is according to a report commissioned by the Digital Media and Marketing Association. The survey was conducted among 2 263 South African Internet users between 21 September and 5 October 2012.

The report is meant to assist advertisers to understand South African online consumers better.

A full 95% of respondents said they used the Internet mainly for e-mail, while 84% used it for Web browsing and 78% made use of social networks.

Most respondents — 70% — said they accessed the Internet at home, while 47% accessed it at a place of work.

The most popular Web browser was Microsoft’s Internet Explorer, with 63% of those surveyed saying they used it, followed by Google’s Chrome at 40%.

The survey shows e-mail is the main reason South Africans go online, followed closely by Web browsing and social networking.

Asked whether the Internet displaces other media, most respondents said it did, with the bulk reporting a decline in their consumption of newspapers and magazines. A sizeable 45% of respondents said they watched less television and 28% said they listened to less radio because they had Internet access.

Nearly 60% of those surveyed said they found advertisements on websites most relevant, followed by social networks (36%). Mobile advertising clearly has a long way to go in SA, with only 3% saying they found adverts in mobile applications useful. For mobile websites, the figure was even lower.

Facebook is by far the most popular social network, with 88% of respondents claiming to be members of the site and 20% of Facebook users claiming to spend five or more hours a day on the service. Only half of those surveyed used Twitter and only slightly more than a third used LinkedIn. — (c) 2013 NewsCentral Media