Yahoo! released some analysis and insights regarding iPad usage of its sites and network. Most of the analysis is demographic in nature and is as might be expected in terms of affluence, gender and age. However one point made in the past is that 10% of the iPad-related traffic Yahoo! is seeing is coming from outside the US.
How’s that? The iPad is only available in the US right now. It appears people are buying iPads in the US and shipping them (or carrying them) back to their homes in Europe and Asia. Here’s what Yahoo! says:
One surprising data point is the non-U.S. IP traffic on the iPad that’s coming to Yahoo! During the measurement period, the iPad has only been available for purchase in the U.S. market; however, we observe approximately 10% of IP traffic coming from Europe and Asia Pacific. Specifically, the U.K., France, and Germany are the top countries in Europe, and Taiwan and Hong Kong make up the most traffic in Asia Pacific.
Here are some graphical representations of the data released by Yahoo!:
Update: I was wrong about non-US tourists or business travelers; it appears the answer to the “how did they get them overseas?” question is eBay.