Qataris among the most digitally connected citizens in Arab region, says new study

In the modern world which we live in, one cannot even think of a life without Internet and social media.

The use and influence of social media in our lives have increased with each passing day. Thanks to super fast Internet available in Qatar, social media scene in the country has always been robust.

A recently released five-year retrospective report, examining media use in the Middle East, found that Qataris are among the most digitally connected citizens in the Arab region, reported Gulf Times. 

Qatar boasts of one of the highest Internet penetrations in the world, approaching saturation at 95%, said Northwestern University in Qatar (NU-Q).

“With the goal of understanding the communication ecosystem in the region better, NU-Q launched the first of five ‘Media Use in the Middle East’ studies in 2013. Now, we’re able to evaluate lessons learned comprehensively and understand the value of both relative stability and media shifts — whether incremental or more significant,” said NU-Q dean and CEO Everette E Dennis.

The largest analysis of its kind in the region, the Media Use in the Middle East study examined media behaviour across established and new platforms in seven countries including Qatar, Lebanon, Jordan, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Egypt.

Extensive research was done on long-term social media patterns, how and where people seek news and entertainment, the connection between cultural traditions of the region, and comparisons among the studied countries, according to The Peninsula.

Here are some of the most important findings of the report.

* At an average of 44.5 hours a week, Qataris spend more time online than any other Arab nationals in the region. This is a substantial increase from 2013 when the average use per week was 37 hours.

* While Qataris spend at least 60% more time online than all other nationals, they are less likely to be engaged in popular online activities like playing video games or using Facebook.

* An estimated two-thirds of Qatari Internet users like to watch news, comedy and religious/spiritual content online. More than half of them are viewers of sports and games online. Qataris are the first citizenry in the study to watch more online content than on TV. Remarkably, three in 10 Qataris say they never watch TV.

The report shows that the time Qataris spent with family has also shown a significant increase, with it averaging 43.2 hours a week. The report concludes by saying that while Qataris have embraced digital media, it does not conform to several regional, and global, expectations.