The number of Filipinos with access to the internet rose 27 per cent year-on-year to 60 million or 58 per cent of the population at end-the end of January, according a report by Hootsuite and UK-based consultancy We are Social.

Active mobile social users jumped 32 per cent from a year earlier to 54 million. The report said Filipinos spend an average of four hours and seventeen minutes a day on social media sites including Facebook, Snapchat and Twitter.

The share of web traffic consumed via mobile phones increased 31 per cent year-on-year to 38 per cent at end-January, while the percentage accessed on laptops and desktops fell 13 per cent to 56 per cent. Just 6 per cent of traffic came from tablets, down 7 per cent from a year earlier.

Data was derived from details of active monthly users from social media companies.

The Philippines, with a population of 103 million, saw its mobile subscriber base rise 9 per cent over the past year to 129.4 million at end-January.