Americans lap up broadband

US has a healthy broadband population

Americans are embracing high speed net access, according to a report by a leading US think tank.

The Pew Internet and American Life project found that nearly a third of US citizens with a home internet connection have converted to broadband.

This represents 16% of the total population of the country.

The number of Americans connected to broadband has increased by 50% compared to last year as surfers see the value of a fast net connection.

Lack of access

However the survey, which questioned 1,495 Americans, also found that take-up of broadband could be slowing.

Fewer dial-up internet users, the prime candidates for upgrades, said they wanted broadband compared to a year ago.

And those most keen to get their hands on broadband tend to live in areas that cannot get the technology.

In the US, cable accounts for the lion's share of the broadband market with around 67% of connections. DSL - access via the phone line - accounts for around 34% of broadband connections.

Cable passes around 90% of US homes with the excluded 10% confined to rural areas.

UK hopes

On the other side of the pond, broadband is also beginning to appeal to the mass market with the UK Government hoping this month will break the two million mark for broadband connections.

There are signs that here too overall internet access is levelling off, with experts predicting it will remain at around the 50% mark.

Having half the population offline could pose problems for the government, which is keen to hook up all schools and doctors to the technology as well as making all its services available on the net.

To persuade users to get online with either a fast or traditional dial-up connection, the government is offering free taster sessions as well as a variety of campaigns to involve older citizens and those traditional cut off from the net revolution.

In Europe, analysts predict that broadband take-up will overtake that in the US by 2008, with 48% of European households online with a fast net connection compared to 46% in the US.

By 2008, Jupiter Research predicts the UK will have eight million broadband connections. In Europe only Germany will have more, with 12.2 million.