Internet users in Brazil are Young & Social.

A slight majority of consumers in Brazil have accessed the internet, new data from the local internet regulator Núcleo de Informação e Coordenação do Ponto BR (NIC.BR) shows, with usage concentrated strongly among those under the age of 34. Younger users are also more likely to use the internet for communication, with email, instant messaging and social networking topping the list of communication activities.

According to the firm’s annual household communications study, “TIC Domicílios 2011,” as of January 2012, 53% of all consumers in Brazil had accessed the internet at least once in their lifetime and 45% had accessed within the three months prior to being surveyed. eMarketer, which estimates the number of internet users that access at least once a month, is more conservative, estimating internet penetration at 42% in 2012.

The NIC.BR surveyed 25,000 consumers in Brazil from November 2011 to January 2012 and found that users ages 16- to 24-years-old were the most likely to have ever used the internet, at 81%, followed by 10- to 15-year-olds (75%) and 25- to 34-year-olds (67%). Internet users were fairly evenly split by gender.

NIC.BR also found that internet users in Brazil were avid online communicators: 78% of respondents said they had used email during the prior three months, 72% had used instant messaging and 69% had used social networks like orkut, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), microblogs and blogging were less popular, at 23%, 22% and 15%, respectively. Again, usage was nearly evenly split by gender, and 16- to 24-year-olds trended higher in most categories.

eMarketer expects internet users in Brazil who use the internet at least once a month to consist of 48% of the population by 2016, for a total of 103 million users. As more consumers head online, brands can expect to conduct a large portion of their communications there, as well.

For more information at http://www.emarketer.com