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NEWS
PH world’s No. 1 in terms of time spent on social media
01.24.17
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The report, called Digital in 2017, showed that Filipinos spent an average of 4 hours and 17 minutes per day on social media sites such as Facebook, Snapchat and Twitter. The data were based on active monthly user data from social media companies as recent as Jan. 2017.
The Philippines is followed by Brazil (3 hours and 43 minutes) and Argentina (3 hours and 32 minutes).
The United States, where many of these social media players were founded, is among the bottom half at an average 2 hours and 6 seconds per day. The least active—the Japanese—logged on to social media an average of 40 minutes per day.
The Philippines’s social media usage stands in stark contrast to its internet speed. Fixed broadband speed here is among the slowest in Asia Pacific while mobile connections are among the fastest, according to the most recent Akamai report.
There appeared a relationship between poor fixed broadband speed and time spent on social media.
The top three social media users, the Philippines, Brazil and Argentina, had an average fixed-line broadband speed of 4.2 megabits per second (mbps), 5.5 mbps and 5 mbps, respectively.
The fastest was South Korea, with 26.3 mbps. (South Koreans logged on to social media an average of 1 hour and 11 minutes per day).
As experts debate whether users spend more time on the internet because of the slow speed, the Digital in 2017 report revealed a clear trend: that internet usage was on the rise.
According to the report, the Philippines’s internet and social media users grew by over 25 percent, up 13 million and 12 million over last year, respectively. Mobile was also a fast-growing platform accounting for 38 percent of all web traffic in the country, up by almost a third over 2016, the report showed.
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http://technology.inquirer.net/58090/ph-worlds-no-1-terms-time-spent-social-media
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Internet addiction is sweeping America, affecting millions.
​29 Aug 2017
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Like alcohol and drugs, the internet provides a high, resulting in problematic overuse.
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For the first time, a study on internet addiction — focusing specifically on online gaming — is being funded by The National Institutes of Health to determine the best form of treatment. It kicks off this week.
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Conducted at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine, the study may ultimately help to determine whether online gaming should be listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders as a true mental health disorder.
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The U.S. lags behind many other countries that already officially recognize tech addiction as a disorder, leading governments and health-care providers there to develop a series of major initiatives to curb the problem. Insurance coverage in the U.S. is largely to blame.
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https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/29/us-addresses-internet-addiction-with-funded-research.html
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Teen's death at Chinese internet addiction camp sparks anger.
14 August 2017
A Chinese teenager has died days after he was sent to an internet addiction treatment centre, reigniting criticism of these controversial institutions. The 18-year-old had allegedly sustained multiple injuries, and the centre's director and staff members have been held by police, according to reports.
The incident took place earlier this month in eastern Anhui province. China has seen a proliferation in so-called "boot camps" aimed at treating internet and gaming addictions.
Some are known for their military-style discipline and have been criticised for overly harsh practices.
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