In May 2003, 42% of European surfers, or 35m people, were women, up very slightly from 41% last year. The speed of growth is so slow that by current rates of demographic change it will be 2010 before the numbers of men and women surfing are equal.
However, things are different in America. On the other side of the Atlantic women have already overtaken men with 51% of surfers being women, according to Nielsen//NetRatings.
Tom Ewing, European market analyst at Nielsen//NetRatings, said: "Getting more women online matters. Because there is still the perception of the internet as a very male-dominated place. That needs to change in order for a greater range of sites to win a large female audience. Changes are taking place but it's a very slow process in some markets."
Across Europe, the picture is by no means universal. Sweden and the UK have the highest percentage of women surfers, but women still account for less than 40% of Italy's online population and this figure has decreased since May 2002.
The sites that attract the highest number of female surfers include shopping, travel, education, finance and health and beauty sites, particularly in those countries with a higher proportion of women online.
In the UK, some of the top sites visited by women in May according to Nielsen//NetRatings were the Tesco-owned women's website , as well as the main site, , and .
"The market responds to women coming online by providing sites they will want to see," Ewing said. "What's interesting is how well specialised and practical sites do -- shopping or local guides, for instance -- whereas portals specifically designed for women have a much lower profile."
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