Why do people in the Middle East and Africa region use the Internet? As more and more people are spending more time online, it’s important to ask this obvious question.

And no, it’s not e-commerce or entertainment that drives people online. A research has explored how social media has evolved from a place to share content to a place to consume content.

On the contrary, the research by the Global Web Index looks at the growing demand for news content on social.

“Networking behaviors are becoming more orientated around fulfilling activities that have traditionally lain outside of the social media arena. One of the biggest transitions seen is the spread of news content across social networks,” the research notes.

The research titled ‘The Evolution of News on Social Media’ also finds that globally, half of Internet users say that keeping up with news and current events is a very important reason for using the internet. This figure has remained steady over the past few years, and is a trend that holds true across different regions of the world.

Like North America and Europe, in the Middle East & Africa (MEA) as well, almost everyone who is looking for news content online (54%) is using social to do so (47%).

Also, more than half of online users (52 per cent) in the MEA region say that a main reason why they use social media is to keep up with news/events, the findings for 2017 say. In 2015, this percentage was 47 per cent.

“The shift in social behaviors actually presents some opportunities for brands and marketers. With less content creation but more content consumption, brands can fill a gap – especially with content that surrounds news stories and current events,” the research notes.

Among other findings of the research are:

– Almost 4 in 10 Internet users say they are following their favorite brands on social, while 1 in 4 are following brands from which they are thinking of making a purchase from

– Influencer marketing makes the most impact among 16-24s, but even among this age group it’s just 18% who say they find new brands via celebrity or influencer endorsements.

– Live video has quickly become an essential asset in the arsenal of social media companies.