Though chatting is most popular, it is not the only thing that women in Asia are using the Internet for. There are some like Anita, an airhostess in India, who prefers to shop on the Internet. Says she, "I spend so much of my time travelling that it is difficult to find time to visit to the different shops. And I go to so many cities. I check out the online catalogues of the various shops and if I find something I like, I go to that shop, check out the product and then buy it. It is really a big convenience for me."

According to the NetValue survey, the number of women using e-cards (for shopping) also registered huge increases between these three months. It went up by 79.1 per cent in Hong Kong, 64.9 per cent in Korea, 56.4 per cent in Taiwan and 36.9 per cent in Singapore.

Understandably, since women are using the Internet more, it has also affected the way in which they spend their free time. For instance, a new report by Jupiter Media Metrix, a research agency based in the USA, shows that around 44 per cent of the women interviewed said that they were spending less time watching television and more time surfing the Internet.

"I find the Internet a more interesting way of spending time with the children," says Manila-based Maya. "We play games together. I also surf with my children and help them with their homework by finding more information on the Internet. Whilst they do their work, I often chat with my friends. The fun thing is that my children also teach me new ways of using the Internet - they taught me how to download music and how to use a group chat."

According to the report, around 29 per cent of the mothers surveyed in America said that they used the Internet to play games online. The same percentage used the Internet to download music, while 40 per cent used it to research for school and homework-related projects for their children.

This study also found that women who do not have children use the Internet more. They are also bigger spenders on the Internet - around 63 per cent of those interviewed in America said that they had spent over $100 online over the last three months, compared to 52 per cent mothers who had spent the same amount. Women with children, on the other hand, use the Internet to make travel arrangements, do research for work and read the news online.

In such a scenario, it is only a matter of time before the corporate world starts focussing on women. If consciousness raising in small groups led to major changes in women's lives in the 1960s, the new technology and the new millennium may see a new consciousness developing as more and more women log on to the Internet and use it to their advantage. — WFS