Ireland is becoming a "two-tier" nation in terms of the business done online, a major e-commerce company said today.
A study by Ebay tracked buying activities in every county in the Republic during the 2007. The company based its e-commerce index on amounts purchased on its site on a per capita basis in each county.
Ebay said a "significant digital divide" emerged. "The east coast and the south-east emerged as leaders with the rest of the country significantly behind," said Ebay.
"The top performers were Wicklow, Carlow and Laois, which were respectively 33 per cent, 32 per cent and 26 per cent above the average for the country as a whole, while Monaghan, Roscommon and Offaly reported the lowest levels of e-commerce activity.
"These counties trailed the national average by 51 per cent, 49 per cent and 45 per cent respectively."
Dublin's rating of 111 on the index put it at 11 per cent above the average, while Cork rated low, with an index of 94, or 6 per cent below average, for its online shopping habits. Galway, with a rating of 93, was some 7 per cent below the national average.