The Arab Region inthe New Internet World

William DuttonOxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford

Global Values Project: http://www.oii.ox.ac.uk/research/projects/?id=65

Presentation for INET Qatar, Doha, 27 November 2012.

Focus: Global User Perspectives on Freedom of Expression

Researchers: William Dutton, Principal Investigator; Soumitra Dutta, Co-Principal Investigator; Ginette Law, Research Associate,

Gillian Bolsover, Research Assistant, Isabella Litke, Research Assistant

Based at the Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford, in collaboration with the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of

Management, Cornell University.

Surveys conducted in collaboration with the World Economic Forum (WEF) and comScore

Supported by ictQatar through ISIS Innovation, University of Oxford

Online field research conducted by Toluna and comScore

The Global Values Project

1. New online nations are dominant in the New World;

2. Users developing a global Internet culture: sharing similar values and attitudes;

3. Newly adopting countries are as liberal, if not more so, such as support for freedom of expression;

4. Users in the newly adopting nations are more innovative in their patterns of use, e.g., social networking.

The Global Values Project: The New Internet World

Research Questions

• Where does MENA sit in the ‘New Internet World’?

• Are there patterns of attitudes or beliefs constraining the role of the Internet in the MENA region?

Methodology

• Online survey of Internet users in selected nations of the Middle East and North Africa conducted in two phases, from July through September 2012, fielded by Toluna.*

• Merged with online survey of Internet users in selected nations world-wide from July through September 2012, fielded by comScore.

• Contextualized by review of related research and literature, including other survey data available to the project investigators.

*The survey was suspended during Ramadan.

(N) = 2,309 (N) = 9,166

The Survey Sample

Composition:

• 11,225 respondents in over 58 countriesMENA

REGIONAFRICA LATIN

AMERICAASIA EUROPE OCEANIA /

AUSNORTH

AMERICATOTAL

(N) 2,803 595 1,825 2,156 2,025 509 1,312 11,225

MENA REGION GCC NORTH AFRICA

Algeria 229 Bahrain 11 Algeria 229

Bahrain 11 Kuwait 197 Egypt 529

Egypt 529 Oman 141 Morocco 270

Iran 3 Qatar 156 Tunisia 108

Iraq 1 Saudi Arabia 511

Israel 10 UAE 245

Jordan 243

Kuwait 197

Morocco 270

Oman 141

Qatar 156Saudi Arabia 511

Tunisia 108

UAE 245

Yemen 149

TOTAL 2803 1261 1136

Number and Proportion of Internet Users by Region

Source: Internet World Stats- www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm. Penetration rates are based on a world population of 6,930,055,154 and 2,267,233,742 estimated Internet users for December 31, 2011.

North America Oceania/Australia Europe Latin America/

Carib.

Middle East Asia Africa0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

12%

1%

22%

10%

3%

45%

6%

273

24

501

236

77

1017

139

79%

68%

61%

40%

36%

26%

14%

Percentage of global Internet population Number of Internet Users (mio.)Internet penetration within region

% o

f Int

erne

t use

rs

Tota

l num

ber o

f Int

erne

t use

rs (

Mil.

)

Patterns of Use

Image courtesy of jannoon028/FreeDigitalPhotos.netImage courtesy of uak_rock8/Flickr.com

• MENA users rely more on the Internet for information & communication than users in North America/Europe. • The Internet is a greater source of entertainment, such as

music, in the MENA region.• MENA users more involved in content production than old

Internet countries.• However, less reliance on the Internet for work/school and

business and commerce in MENA.

1 Totally disagree

2 3 4 5 6 Totally agree 70%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

8%

3% 4%

9%

12%

15%

49%

10%

4% 5%

9%11%

13%

49%

7%

3% 4%

10%12%

17%

48%

5%3% 4%

11%

16%

21%

39%

"The Internet is making things better for people like me."

MENA (n=2727)North Africa (n=1102)GCC ( (n=1227)World Average (n=10811)

Global Values: Freedom of Expression, Privacy, Trust, …

Image scourtesy of maya picture and digitalart/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Perceptions of Media Freedom in the MENA Region

Radio Print TV Internet

MENA (n=2803) 0.45 0.49 0.47 0.7

Global Average (n=11225) 0.66 0.65 0.65 0.82

5%

15%

25%

35%

45%

55%

65%

75%

85%

% o

f res

pond

ents

who

bel

ieve

that

the

med

ia h

as fr

eedo

m

Radio Print TV Internet

North Africa (n=1136) 0.47 0.54 0.47 0.78

GCC (n=1261) 0.44 0.46 0.47 0.63

5%

15%

25%

35%

45%

55%

65%

75%

85%

Perceptions of Media Freedom in North Africa and the GCC Region

% o

f res

pond

ents

who

bel

ieve

that

the

med

i a h

as fr

eedo

m

1 Totally disagree

2 3 4 5 6 Totally agree 70%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

5% 5%

9% 10% 10%

59%

3% 2%

12%

18%

46%

3%

10%12% 12%

54%

4% 5%

11%14% 13%

47%

"Access to the Internet should be a fundamental right for all people."

MENA (n=2694)North Africa (n=1092)GCC ( (n=1203)World Average (n=10794)

1 Totally disagree

2 3 4 5 6 Totally agree 70%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

7% 6%

12%

15% 14%

42%

6% 5%

11%

14%

11%

48%

9%7%

15% 16% 16%

33%

4% 3% 5%

13%

19%

41%

"People should be able to say what they feel about their government on the Internet."

MENA (n=2639)North Africa (n=1078)GCC ( (n=1163)World Average (n=10754)

1 Totally disagree

2 3 4 5 6 Totally agree 70%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

6%5%

8%

16%

18%17%

31%

7%6%

8%

19% 19%18%

23%

4% 4%

7%

16%

21%22%

27%

4%

7%

13%

16% 16%

39%

"I can express myself freely online."

MENA (n=2700)North Africa (n=1097)GCC ( (n=1204)World Average (n=10831)

“I can express myself freely online” Proportions Who ‘Totally Disagree’ (MENA)

Male; 6%Female; 8%

Gender

Under 18 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65+

8%7%

6%5%

8%7%

0%

Age**

<6 months 6 mo-<1yr 1 yr-<2 yrs 2 yrs-<5 yrs 5-7 yrs >7 yrs

15%

9%

7%

9%

7%

5%

Experience**

1 Poor 2 3 4 5 6 7 Excellent

29%

17%

7%10%

7%4%

6%

Skills**

0-5 hrs/week 6-10 hrs/week

11-15 hrs/week

16-20 hrs/week

>20 hrs/week

11%

8%

6% 5% 5%

Time of use**

Did not atten

d high sc

hool

High sc

hool

High sc

hool grad

uate

Post-sec

ondy sch

ool

Post-sec

ondy deg

ree

Graduate

school

Graduate

school d

egree

14%

8% 9%

5% 5%7% 6%

Education**

1 Totally disagree 2 3 4 5 6 Totally agree 70%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

11%

5%

7%

13% 13%

37%

10%

5%6%

11%

14%

11%

42%

11%

6%

8%

14%15%

32%

10%

6%

8%

16%17% 17%

27%

"I feel free to say things online that others might not agree with."

MENA (n=2682)

North Africa (n=1093)

GCC ( (n=1194)

World Average (n=10735)

1 Totally disagree

2 3 4 5 6 Totally agree 7 Don't know0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

10%

7%8%

18%

12%

22%

5%

11%

8%

11%

18%17%

6%

8%7%

10%

20%21%

15% 15%

4%

9%

19%20%

“The Internet is a safe place to express my opinions."

MENA (n=2803)North Africa (n=1136)GCC ( (n=1261)World Average (n=11225)

1 Totally disagree

2 3 4 5 6 Totally agree 70%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

13%

6%

8%

13%

16%

13%

30%

15%

7%

9%

12%

14%

12%

31%

12%

7%8%

15%

13%

28%

10%

6%7%

16%

18%17%

27%

"There are times when people should be able to be anonymous on the Internet."

MENA (n=2665)North Africa (n=1064)GCC (n=1185)World Average (n=10701)

1 Totally disagree

2 3 4 5 6 Totally agree 7 Don't Know0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

16%

12%

10%

28%

7%

18%

6%7%

13%

11%

9%

21%

14%

8%

15%14%

11%

24%

9%

11%

5%

7%

16%15%

14%

27%

6%

"Government authorities should not censor political content on the Internet."

MENA (n=2803)North Africa (n=1136)GCC ( (n=1261)World Average (n=11225)

1 Totally disagree

2 3 4 5 6 Totally agree 70%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

18%

9%

16%15%

24%

17%

8%

10%

13%14%

11%

27%

20%

9%8%

18%

16%

12%

18%

10%

7%

9%

17%18% 18%

23%

“It is OK for people to express their ideas on the Internet, even if they are extreme.”

MENA (n=2652)North Africa (n=1079)GCC ( (n=1180)World Average (n=10761)

The MENA Region Reflects the New Internet World

- Innovative Uses of the Internet and Social Media

- Support for the Internet for Information, Entertainment, Expression, …

- Support for Core Internet Values: Freedom of Expression, Privacy, …

- But More Sensitive Areas of Expression

Concerns over Privacy, Trust, Security, …

Spectrum of Regional Opinions between Two Poles:

Traditional versus Next Generation Users

(education, age, and experience online)

Differences with MENA Region

Over-Arching Themes

Image courtesy of uak_rock8/Flickr.com

Interventions in Support of More Inclusive Access:

- Take-up

- Skills

- Digital Literacy

Encourage Greater Use in Business, Government and Commerce

Foster Dialogue Across the Spectrum of Opinions

Address Uncertainties and Anxieties

Implications for Discussion

Image scourtesy of maya picture and digitalart/FreeDigitalPhotos.net