We might seem a long way from the rest of the world on most conventional measures but Nielsen Online has found that Australia is the global center of the social web universe, with the average Aussie spending an average of seven hours a month on social networking sites.

Nielsen, which attempted to measure the average time spent on social media, found that two-thirds of the world’s Internet population visited social media sites and that the global average for time spent socializing on the web was 5 ½ hours. It also found that time spent on social network sites was growing rapidly – from one in every 15 minutes in 2008 to one in every 11 now.

“Social networking has become a fundamental part of the global online experience,” said John Burbank, CEO of Nielsen Online.

The news had the country’s academics theorizing as to just why Aussies are spending so much time socializing on the web.  

Distance is a tyranny in this country,” Mike Minehan, a communications lecturer from the University of Technology Sydney’s Insearch college told Britain’s Daily Telegraph.

“There’s a subconscious drive in Australia to step outside this isolation we find ourselves in. I think that’s what’s driving it here, the desire to be part of the world and not to be an insignificant island nation in the southern hemisphere.”

The good news for businesses with a strong social media presence is that Aussies are also spending an increased amount of time engaging with brands while they’re doing their socializing, with the number of people interacting with social media advertising rising by 60%. Aussie users are also increasingly using social media outside of the home or office, with one-in-four accessing via their cell phones.

“The opportunities for brands and companies to tap into the social media phenomenon are really just beginning to emerge and to date we’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg,” said Melanie Ingrey, research director for Nielsen Online.

Who needs any more convincing that a social media plan is essential to any growing business.