The internet is worth £100 billion a year to the UK economy according to a new report commissioned by web giant Google.
It represents 7.2% of the country's gross domestic product - more than the construction, transport and utilities sectors.
If the internet was an economic sector in its own right, it would be the UK's fifth largest according to the report commissioned by Google.
Around 60% of the £100 billion figure was found to come from internet consumption - the amount that users spend on online shopping and on the cost of their connections and devices to access the web.
The remainer is made up of investment in the UK's internet infrastructure, government IT spending and net exports.
The Connected Kingdom report says the internet's contribution to the UK's GDP is likely to grow to 10% by 2015, putting it on a par with the financial sector.
Paul Zwillenberg, partner with BCG, the firm behind the research, said: "The internet is pervasive in the UK economy today, more so than in most advanced countries.
"Several industries - including media, travel, insurance and fashion - are being transformed by it."
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