Communication & Creativity Research Flagship - Projects
Digital Futures: World Internet Project (WIP)
Project Code: CCI
The Australian component of the World Internet Project (WIP) is a collaborative, survey-based project looking at the social, cultural, political and economic impact of the Internet and other new communications technologies. Founded at UCLA in 1999 (and now based at the USC Annenberg Center), the WIP now has 30 partners in countries and regions all over the world.
The basic element component of the collaboration is an agreement to undertake regular sample surveys of internet use and non-use in the participant's country including a series of agreed-upon core questions, and to share this data with other partners. The critical defining characteristics of this research are that it is longitudinal, enables cross-country comparison and includes both internet users and non-users.
Based at universities and research institutes around the world, the WIP conducts detailed research, generates a wealth of publications and holds annual conferences looking at the impact of these new technologies. The Swinburne Institute for Social Research at Swinburne University is managing the Australian branch of this worldwide project in partnership with CCI.
Research Team
Chief Investigators: Prof Julian Thomas and Mr. Scott Ewing
Publications and Other Research Outputs
Project Outcomes
A number of key findings about Australians' internet use have been announced as part of the latest installment of the Digital Futures Report, Australia's contribution to the World Internet Project.
Key findings include:
Australians shop till they drop online
Australians may be the world's most avid online shoppers, bargain hunters and browsers according to the latest Digital Futures Report. Fifty-seven per cent of Australians search the internet for something to buy at least once a week and more than half buy something online every month. Read more here.
Australians prefer not to pay for digital information
Seven in ten Australians are unwilling to pay for news and information obtained from the internet. Most users rate the internet as important or very important as an information source, but there is a strong view that content should continue to be free. Young Australians are even less willing to pay for internet content, with more than three quarters of those aged under 24 saying they are not prepared to pay up. Read more here.
Australians favour internet freedom - with limits
Australians are overwhelmingly in favour of free speech and freedom to criticise their governments on the internet - but equally strongly of a view that children's content should be restricted. Notably, given the current debate on internet censorship, eighty-three per cent of Australians believe that children's internet content should have restrictions and that responsibility for this should be shared. Read more here.
The full report can be viewed at: http://cci.edu.au/publications/digital-futures-2010
Contact The Swinburne Institute
The Swinburne Institute
for Social Research
Mail 53
PO Box 218
Hawthorn, Victoria, 3122
Australia
+61 3 9214 8825