High-speed Internet use is still growing, but the early adapters appear to have adapted, and the laggards aren't jumping on the bandwagon as quickly as one would hope, according to a study from Pew Internet & American Life Project.
While there is a potential market among Web surfers who use slower connections, “the low-hanging fruit of dial-up users was harvested by broadband service providers” between 2002 and 2005, according to the study.
Who's left? As of May 2005, newbie Internet users (those online for less than 12 months) who access the Web via dial-up services amounted to 4 million people. Another 32 million consumers — roughly 23% of the adult population — are considered “moderately” experienced dial-up users: They've been online between one and six years. Only 13 million who have surfed for more than six years use dial-up services. And then there's the 32% of the adult population that doesn't use the Internet at all.
Dial-up users are not likely accomplices for change, according to the report. They tend to be older (average age 43), less affluent (36% earn less than $30,000 a year), and less educated (24% were college graduates).
They're also not as involved with the Internet as other groups; only 28% said they had tried at least one online activity. This does not auger well for getting these consumers to upgrade to broadband.
