German internet start-ups triple in 2007: survey

BERLIN (Reuters) - The number of new internet firms founded in Germany in 2007 more than tripled compared with the previous year, according to a survey published on Tuesday.

In 2007, 323 new internet firms were registered in Europe's largest economy, up from 97 the previous year, and 50 in 2005, German online magazine deutsche-startups.de said.

Alexander Huesing, the magazine's editor, said he believed the peak of start-up activity had been reached.

"The 2007 boom year won't be topped," he said in a statement. "But the number of start-ups (in 2008) will probably end up being significantly higher than it was in 2006."

The 2007 start-up total was the highest in at least five years; the survey database extends back only to 2003.

The new firms were focused on online platforms for social communities and shopping websites, the magazine said.

The German economy expanded by 2.5 percent in 2007, rounding off the strongest two-year burst of activity since the country re-unified in 1990. This year, most analysts expect German economic growth to slow to around 1.7 percent.

(Reporting by Dave Graham; Editing by David Cowell)