BUSINESS USE OF IT

Business Use of Information Technology, selected indicators(a), 2007 - 08 and 2008 - 09
			2007-08	2008-09
Estimated number of businesses(b)		'000	711	713
Businesses with:
	Internet access	%	86.8	90.5
	web presence	%	36.3	41.5
Businesses with Internet access and broadband as main type of connection		%	93.5	98.1
Businesses which:
	placed orders via the Internet or web	%	42.7	46.0
	received orders via the Internet or web	%	23.7	27.1
Internet income(c)		$b	81.0	123.0
(a) Proportions are of all businesses.
(b) Business counts are provided for contextual information only, please refer to Explanatory Notes 20 and 21.
(c) Please refer to Explanatory Note 17.

The proportion of businesses with Internet access increased from 87% in 2007-08 to 90% in 2008-09. Of businesses with the Internet, 98% listed broadband as the main connection type (up from 94% in 2007-08).

Businesses reporting a web presence increased from 36% in 2007-08 to 42% in 2008-09.

The proportion of businesses that placed orders via the Internet or web for goods or services increased in 2008-09 to 46% (up from 43% in 2007-08). The number of businesses receiving orders via the Internet or web increased to 27% in 2008-09 (from 24% in 2007-08). The income resulting from orders received over the Internet or web in 2008-09 was approximately $123 billion. This represented a 52% increase from the figure of approximately $81 billion in 2007-08.

Business Use of Information Technology, selected indicators, by employment size(a), 2008 - 09
			0-4 persons	5-19 persons	20-199 persons	200 or more persons	Total
Estimated number of businesses(b)		'000	433	217	60	3	713
Businesses with:
	Internet access	%	87.7	93.8	98.0	99.0	90.5
	web presence	%	31.2	53.3	70.0	95.1	41.5
Businesses with Internet access and broadband as main type of connection		%	97.8	98.4	98.8	99.8	98.1
Businesses which:
	placed orders via the Internet or web	%	40.6	52.8	58.7	75.1	46.0
	received orders via the Internet or web	%	23.5	31.8	35.3	35.9	27.1
Internet income(c)		$b	^10.1	^22.7	^34.6	55.6	123.0
^ estimate has a relative standard error of 10% to less than 25% and should be used with caution
(a) Proportions are of all businesses in each employment size category.
(b) Business counts are provided for contextual information only, please refer to Explanatory Notes 20 and 21.
(c) Please refer to Explanatory Note 17.

Internet access

Nine in ten businesses reported having Internet access during the year ended 30 June 2009. The likelihood of a business using the Internet was greater for each successive employment size range. For example, during the year ended 30 June 2009 almost all businesses with 200 or more persons employed accessed the Internet, compared to 88% of businesses with 0-4 persons employed.

Almost all businesses within the Information media and telecommunications, Financial and insurance services, and Professional, scientific and technical services industries reported having Internet access (all 99%). The industry with the lowest proportion of businesses accessing the Internet was Accommodation and food services, at 73%.


Broadband use

Businesses with Internet access were asked to identify the main type of Internet connection used as at the end of June 2009. The ABS defines broadband as an 'always on' Internet connection with an access speed equal to or greater than 256kbps. Broadband was identified as the main connection type by 98% of Australian businesses with Internet access.

For businesses with Internet access, broadband as the main type of Internet connection was reasonably homogenous across employment size groups, ranging from 98% for businesses with 0-4 persons employed to almost 100% for businesses with 200 or more persons employed.

Broadband as the main connection type was most prevalent among businesses using the Internet in Construction and Financial and insurance services, both 100%. Electricity, gas, water and waste services, Administrative and support services and Arts and recreation services were the least likely to have broadband as the main connection type (all 96%).


Web Presence

A web presence was reported by 42% of Australian businesses as at 30 June 2009. This includes businesses with a website or home page, but not those only listed in an online directory.

A strong relationship exists between the number of persons employed by a business and the likelihood that the business has a web presence. For example, at the end of June 2009, 95% of businesses with 200 or more persons employed reported a web presence, compared with 31% of businesses with 0-4 persons employed.

At the end of June 2009, Information media and telecommunications had the highest proportion of businesses with a web presence (65%), followed by Wholesale trade and Arts and recreation services (both 59%). The lowest occurrence of web presence was reported by businesses within the Transport, postal and warehousing industry (21%).


Internet commmerce

The 2008-09 BCS measured the proportion of Australian businesses using the Internet or web to place and/or receive orders (i.e. the incidence of Internet commerce). For receipt of orders, an estimate of income resulting from these orders was obtained. Please refer to Explanatory Notes 16 and 17 for the definitions used and information about estimation of Internet income.

Placing orders

The proportion of all businesses placing orders via the Internet or web during 2008-09 was 46%.

As with most other indicators of IT use, there continues to be an apparent relationship between business size (based on employment) and the indicator. For example, during the year ended 30 June 2009, only 41% of all businesses with 0-4 persons employed placed orders via the Internet or web, whereas 75% of those with 200 or more persons employed placed orders.

The Information, media and telecommunications and Professional, scientific and technical services industries had the highest proportions of businesses which placed orders via the Internet or web (67% and 66% respectively). By contrast, Accommodation and food services had the lowest proportion of businesses placing orders over the Internet or web (29%).

Receiving orders

Measures of receipt of orders via the Internet or web exclude transactions where the commitment to purchase is not made via the Internet or web. For example, regular orders made via the Internet for goods or services for which the original commitment to purchase was made using other arrangements are excluded. The proportion of all businesses reporting receipt of orders via the Internet or web during 2008-09 was 27%, with income obtained from these orders totalling an estimated $123 billion.

The proportion of businesses receiving orders via the Internet or web increased successively with the number of persons employed by the business. Businesses with 200 or more persons employed had the highest proportion of orders, at 36%, closely followed by businesses with 20-199 persons employed, at 35%. The smallest proportion was for businesses with 0-4 persons employed (24%), while 32% of businesses that employed 5-19 persons reported receiving Internet orders.

The highest proportions of businesses to receive orders over the Internet were in those industries traditionally associated with goods, with Wholesale trade and Manufacturing at 45% and 44% respectively. The industry with the lowest proportion of businesses that received orders via the Internet or web was Health care and social assistance (11%).

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