Smartphone fans lead the world in internet screen time

On the crowded morning metro in Helsinki, silence prevails. Everyone is hunched over their smartphone screens, reading the news, checking emails or watching videos.

A loud "yeah!" breaks the quiet, along with a delighted squeal from a toddler whose mother has just handed him her smartphone to calm him down with a video.

Finland, once a world leader in mobile telephony with Nokia, is in a class of its own when it comes to internet usage on smartphones and tablets, thanks to cheap subscription plans.