Affordable Broadband? 'Meh,' Majority of Polled Americans Say

While affordable broadband adoption has become a top priority under the Barack Obama administration, most Americans disagree that high-speed Internet connections should be valued so highly.

A recent poll by the Pew Internet and American Life Project reports that, by a 53 to 41 percent margin, Americans say they don't believe the spread of affordable broadband should be a major government priority. And "contrary to what some might suspect, non-Internet users are less likely than current users to say the government should place a high priority on the spread of high-speed connections," the report stated.

When asked, "Do you think that expanding affordable high-speed Internet access to everyone in the country should be a top priority for the federal government, important but lower priority, not too important, or should it not be done?" the 2,252 surveyed Americans answered as follows:

• Twenty-six percent said expansion of affordable broadband access should not be attempted by government.
• Twenty-seven percent said it was "not too important" a priority.
• Thirty percent said it was an important priority. 
• Eleven percent said it should be a top priority.

Older Americans were among those least likely to support the expansion of affordable broadband access as a government priority, while younger users (under age 30) and blacks were most likely to favor such efforts.

Also, those offline "are especially resistant to government efforts" to expand broadband access, and such non-users represent about one-fifth (21 percent) of American adults, according to the study. Forty-five percent of non-users say the government shouldn't get its hands in making affordable broadband available to everyone, while 5 percent of non-users say broadband access should be a top federal government priority.

Not only are non-Internet users unfamiliar with the Web, they aren't really interested in joining the online world. Only 10 percent indicated they would like to start using the Internet or e-mail in the future -- a figure largely stagnant since the first time the question was posed to non-users in 2002.

And as found in prior surveys, about half (48 percent) of non-users cite issues of relevance when asked why they don't go online. One in five (21 percent) point to price-related issues, 18 percent cite usability issues and 6 percent point to access or availability as the main reason for not going online.

Most Americans also don't view a lack of broadband as a "major disadvantage" in any area of life, from learning about job opportunities and improving career skills, to using government services and keeping up with the news. Forty-three percent think it is a disadvantage when it comes to obtaining job opportunities and career skills, while 34 percent think it impedes one's ability to access health information.

When it comes to Americans' adoption of broadband -- which previously saw several years of double digit growth -- such rates have "slowed dramatically" in 2010. Two-thirds (66 percent) use a high-speed Internet connection at home, compared to 63 percent in 2009. However, broadband adoption by blacks has increased by a greater margin, at 56 percent this year versus 46 percent in 2009.

2010 Study Considered Americans' Attitudes

The Pew Research Center's Internet and American Life Project conducts a broadband adoption study each spring, but this year, did so with a "dramatically changed policy environment" as a backdrop. In March, about $7.2 billion of the $787 billion federal stimulus program funds were set aside for grants and mapping efforts designed for underserved groups, and the FCC unveiled a major broadband plan. The FCC's plan contained recommendations for encouraging expanded broadband access and pressed for changes that could allow the Internet to spur economic growth, and improve health care and government services delivery.

On top of capturing data about the non-user population, the survey evaluated Americans' attitudes about the value of a broadband connection for key activities.