Some libraries offer free high speed internet services to patrons. However, in many of those markets some individuals are starting to sign up for broadband in spite of this offer. Over the next year, every four seconds somebody in this country will decide it's time to ante up an extra $25 to $35 a month to convert to a high-speed broadband service from a dial-up connection to the Internet. At this rate, about half the households in the U.S. will be broadband subscribers in the next five years a total of more than 70 million homes. Newton, Mass.-based research firm Strategy Analytics, Inc. estimates that 27 percent of homes with Internet access in the U.S. go online through broadband connections. The firm expects that figure to exceed 70 percent by 2008.

Broadband users tend to be educated, urban and upscale. A survey by the Pew Internet & American Life Project reveals that 59 percent of them are college graduates, compared with 35 percent of dial-up users. Broadband users skew white, with half as many blacks and Hispanics accessing via high-speed connections as through dial-up. A January 2003 Nielsen Net Ratings study shows that narrowband skews slightly female (53 percent), while broadband skews slightly male (52 percent).

As with the Internet, broadband isn't exclusively a phenomenon among the young: Usage and growth are strongest among Baby Boomers. According to the Nielsen Net Ratings study, the highest rate of broadband growth is among 50- to 54-year-olds, with 3 million people in that age bracket using broadband, compared with 4 million 12- to 17-year-olds. The number of seniors ages 65 to 69 using broadband grew 67 percent in 2002, to 1.3 million people, nearly identical to the growth rate among teens.

These demographics probably match a majority of your patrons given that young and old alike are interested in signing on. What is the implication for libraries and their patrons? If this is a service your library can afford to offer it can serve as a powerful incentive to bring patrons in to your portal and provide a high value service patrons use every day. Over one year the cost savings can be significant and why not use a free library service? The use of high speed internet may be another useful tool in drawing in more patrons to your library.

Source: Pamela Paul, Media Channels: Hurry up and wait. American Demographics, June 1, 2003.