E-mail has officially overtaken the traditional post in the popularity stakes, research has shown. Figures show nearly 13 million people regularly use e-mail from their home computers, sending 12.3 and receiving 39.1 e-mails on average during December.
A study by Internet measurement company NetValue found 550 million e-mails were sent and received by UK homes in January - nearly 300 million more than the domestic amount handled by the Royal Mail.
Alki Manias, managing director of NetValue UK, said:
- "This is a real milestone for e-mail. Although only widely available to the public since 1995, the e-mail has surpassed hundreds of years of domestic Royal Mail services in a few years. We live in a fast-paced world and people want instant communications."