Romanians like online news, but few use online banking or travel services

Romania's internet users can't get enough of online news, but figures from EU statistics office Eurostat suggest they are yet to warm to online banking. Some 73 percent of Romanian internet users read online news, well ahead of the EU average – 61 percent. Meanwhile only 8 percent of Romanian internet users make use of online banking services, compared to the 54 percent EU 27 average. Use of social networks is in line with the European average, with 48 percent of the Romanian online community posting messages against a 52 percent EU average. Using the internet to access travel and accommodation services is less common in Romania – 24 percent of users compared to 50 percent on average across the EU. Finally, 9 percent of Romania's online community create websites or blogs – exactly the same as the average for the EU 27. Home access to internet is still significantly behind the EU average. In Romania 54 percent of households had internet access in 2012, compared to 76 percent on average across the EU. Most of them were using broadband connections. The percentage of households with internet access has increased from only 14 percent in 2006 in Romania, but sharp rises have also been seen across the EU. This has meant that Romania has only slightly narrowed the gap with the EU average. editor@romania-insider.com