Press release 20/11/2019

INFORMATION SOCIETY SURVEY. COMPANIES. 2019

In 2018 the number of companies with 10 or more employees that used e-commerce increased in the three provincial capitals of the Basque Country

Just over half of the companies used open-source programs, although their use has steadily decreased since 2015

The number of companies with 10 or more employees that used e-commerce in 2018 accounted for 29.5% of the total number of companies in Vitoria-Gasteiz, 33.5% in Bilbao, and 35.2% in San Sebastián, according to EUSTAT data. Compared to 2015 these percentages represented an increase of 0.4 percentage points in Bilbao, one percentage point in San Sebastián, and up to 4 points in the case of Vitoria-Gasteiz.

At a regional level, 31.6% of companies with 10 or more employees in the Basque Country carried out sales or purchases via e-commerce, varying between 12.6% in Arratia-Nervión and 40.6% in Estribaciones del Gorbea. In addition to Estribaciones del Gorbea in Álava, which traditionally stands out in terms of e-commerce, the percentages in Donostialdea (37.1%), Tolosa (35.4%) in Gipuzkoa, and Gernika-Bermeo (34.8%) in Bizkaia were also significant.

Basque companies with 10 or more employees showed high levels of ICT (Information & Communication Technology) equipment. The same can be said for internet connection, with most regions reaching almost 100%, and an average for the Basque Country as a whole of 99.2% (1.4 points more than in 2015). With the exception of Montaña Alavesa (89.3%), in the nineteen remaining regions and the three capitals more than 98% of companies have an internet connection.

Likewise, 92.3% have a website, a considerable increase compared to 2015: 5.8 percentage points more. Among these, the following regions particularly stand out: Valles Alaveses in Álava (96.8%), Gran Bilbao in Bizkaia (95.0%), and its capital, Bilbao (94.9%), and Bajo Deba in Gipuzkoa (94.4%).

Computer networks also have a strong presence in companies with 10 or more employees in the whole territory. On average, 92.1% of companies have computer networks, although this figure has dropped by 2.3 percentage points since 2015. In this case, the regions of Encartaciones in Bizkaia (96.9%), Valles Alaveses (96.3%) and Estribaciones del Gorbea in Álava (96%) all stood out. Computer networks are not as widely implemented in the regions of Gipuzkoa; with an average of 91% for the whole of the province, Alto Deba was the most prominent region with 92.6%.

53.1% of Basque companies with 10 or more employees used open-source programmes. Uniquely, five regions surpassed 60%; two of them in Bizkaia: Gernika-Bermeo and Encartaciones (70.5% and 66.6% respectively); and three in Álava: Estribaciones del Gorbea, Cantábrica Alavesa and Valles Alaveses (65.9%, 62.6%, and 60.9% respectively). It should be noted that this indicator has fallen steadily since 2015, which marked the high point of the available series with 81.7% of companies, almost 30 percentage points more than this past year.

Finally, carrying out procedures with public administrations by electronic means was an indicator that performed positively and saw extensive implementation in companies with 10 or more employees that have internet access. In effect, 96.3% of companies with 10 or more employees that have internet access carried out procedures with public administrations by electronic means in 2019, 3.2 percentage points more than in 2015. These companies are predominantly found in the regions of Markina-Ondarroa in Bizkaia (99.4%), Alto Deba (98.9%), and Bajo Bidasoa (98.1%), both in Gipuzkoa. In turn, in Álava three regions surpassed 90%: Llanada Alavesa, Estribaciones del Gorbea, and Cantábrica Alavesa.

Half of companies use the Basque language on their website

Half of company websites in the Basque Country are available in the Basque language (50.5%). Websites in the Basque language are more frequent among companies in Gipuzkoa, a province in which six of its seven regions surpass 50%, with varying regional percentages between 45.6% in Bajo Bidasoa and 74% in Alto Deba. Next are the companies in Bizkaia (with an average of 45.8%), where four regions exceed the average level of the Basque Country: Gernika-Bermeo (78.5%), Markina-Ondarroa (73.2%), Encartaciones (66.1%), and Plentzia-Mungia (61.6%). In the case of Álava (with an average of 44.6%), Montaña Alavesa and Cantábrica Alavesa stand out with 67.3% and 55.2%, respectively.

In the Basque capitals, although ICT equipment reaches very similar percentages in companies with 10 or more employees, Bilbao stands out in carrying out procedures with the administration electronically, having a website and computer networks; Donostia-San Sebastián in websites in the Basque language and in e-commerce; and Vitoria-Gasteiz in companies with 10 or more employees that have an internet connection and use of open-source programs.

For further information:

Eustat - Euskal Estatistika Erakundea / Basque Statistics Institute C/ Donostia-San Sebastián, 1 01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz Press Service: servicioprensa@eustat.es Tel: 945 01 75 62