Abstract

The internet is a virtual realm or space inhabited by 3.5 billion individuals who are empowered with the ability to surf from location to location, instantaneously at their personal discretion. These locations are in the form of websites offering services and information. The services offered are comprehensive and cater to all facets of daily living. Services in terms of entertainment, banking, commerce, networking and other need based provisions. Thus internet users are spoilt for choice, in terms of consuming these services. But this population of internet users amounts to more inhabitants than the most populated country in the world, China. This bank of 3.5 billion individuals provides a lucrative opportunity for investors, businesses and companies to innovate and provide a variety of services. Hence the article tries to establish the following findings. Firstly the increase in the number of internet users has attracted various innovative services to be established as an offering or internet destination. Secondly, there has been diffusion of these innovations amongst the internet populace who have transformed into consumers of the services provided, over a periods of time, thus establishing the furtherance of the Diffusion of Innovation theory of mass communication. Thirdly the diffusion of innovations have taken place at differential rates at different parts of the world, given the different culture, social structure and other such parameters as has been established with the application of the Individual Difference theory of Mass communication. Thus the financial growth of some similar internet based companies, have been different on this basis.

Keywords: Utilities, Diffusion of Innovation, Individual Difference