Hard as it is for most of us to believe, there still are many Americans who are perfectly happy -- or at least satisfied -- with their dial-up Internet connections.
Ars Technica reports on the latest Pew Internet & American Life Project survey:
Under an Obama administration, some form of broadband stimulus package is comingand $6 billion is already being kicked around as a starting point. But if you build it, will they come? Pew's Internet & American Life Project reminds us that a hardcore contingent of holdouts won't, no matter how cheap or how fast the connection is.
[W]hen we look at the overall reasons why Americans don't have broadband,
availability isn't the biggest barrier. Neither is price. Those two,
combined, only account for one-third of Americans without broadband.
Two-thirds simply don't want it.
The bigger issue is a lack of perceived value. 19 percent of dial-up
users, for example, say that "nothing" would get them to upgrade, not
even lower prices. ...
Those who have broadband tend to want more of it.
That last part certainly is true. And maybe that's the
real reason so many American dial-up Internet users won't try broadband: They recognize its addictive qualities. You get a little taste of broadband, that heady
rush, and then you want more. And then some more. And then some more. It never
stops. You all know what I'm talking about. Before you know it you're attending 12-step meetings. It's no way to live.
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