Korean `Net surfers` stay longest online

Koreans log more time on the Internet than the peoples of any other country in the world, a U.S. Internet survey agency said Saturday.

According to Nielsen//NetRatings, Korean Internet users spent an average of 16 hours, 17 minutes and 16 seconds a month online, the highest level among the 21 countries surveyed.

The U.S. agency polled 150,000 Internet users in Korea, the United States, Japan and 18 other nations in January.

Koreans also came first in the amount of time spent online per Internet visit with 46 minutes and 35 seconds, and they also searched the most pages with 96.

In terms of time spent online, Internet use by Koreans is almost double the world average and the number of searched pages was even higher.

The low cost of Internet access in Korea was cited as one of the major reasons for the results. The U.S. agency said that in Korea more than four million people subscribed to the high-speed Internet communication network, and the charge for almost indefinite Internet use amounted to just $28 a month.

Meanwhile, the Korean Internet population reached 22.3 million, the fourth highest among the 21 countries after the U.S. with 162.81 million and Japan with 37.88 million. The total global Internet population numbers 371 million, according to the agency.