(26 June 2009 10:30 pm)

MUMBAI: Approximately 63 per cent of adult Americans today have broadband internet connections at home, an increase of 15 per cent over last year, reveals an April 2009 survey by the Pew Research Center’s Internet and American Life Project.

April’s level of high-speed adoption represents a significant jump from figures gathered by the project since the end of 2007 (54 per cent).

The growth in home broadband adoption occurred even though survey respondents reported paying more for broadband compared to May 2008. Last year, the average monthly bill for a broadband internet service at home was $34.50, a figure that stood at $39 in April last.

The growth in broadband adoption indicates that the economic recession has had little effect on decisions about whether to buy or keep a high-speed connection at home.

The Pew Internet Project’s April 2009 survey found that people are twice as likely to say they have cut back or cancelled a cell phone plan or cable TV service than an internet service.

Findings include:

• Nine per cent of internet users say that in the past 12 months they have cancelled or cut back online service.

• 22 per cent of adults say they have cancelled or cut back cable TV service in the past 12 months.

• 22 per cent of cell phone users report that in the past 12 months they have cancelled or cut back cell phone service.

• Broadband users were also asked, for the first time in a Pew survey, as to how they view the importance of broadband to civic and community life. 55 per cent of home broadband users said that broadband was very important to at least one dimension of their lives and community, such as communicating with health care providers, government officials, sharing information about the community or contributing to economic growth.

Pew Internet Project associate director and principal author of the report John B Horrigan says, “For many Americans, a home broadband connection is a conduit for connecting to community and economic opportunity. That puts broadband in the ‘must keep’ category for most users, even when economic times are tough.”