ERIC Number: ED566197
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2012
Pages: 12
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
2012 Minnesota Internet Survey: Digital Divide 2.0 and Beyond
Center for Rural Policy and Development
After more than ten years of asking rural Minnesotans about their access to high-speed Internet service, it is possible to draw a few conclusions: (1) It is fairly well accepted now that broadband access has become a necessity for functioning at full capacity in today's world; (2) The digital divide isn't what it used to be; (3) Broadband no longer ties the user to a fixed location (i.e., the home); and (4) The preceding points tie into what appears to be a generational change in how people access, use, and think of the Internet. The Center for Rural Policy and Development included questions on broadband adoption in its first rural Minnesota survey in 2001. The next year, the survey focused solely on broadband and the Internet. In 2005, the seven-county Twin Cities metropolitan area was included for the first time in order to provide a comparison to rural counties. And in 2012, interviewers called cell phone numbers for the first time, recognizing the number of households that have given up landline phones and now use cell phones as their only phone. Internet service providers are well aware of the trends discussed in this survey--such as demand for mobility and band-width. Since the younger demographic groups are the ones most focused on going mobile and doing more things on the Internet, these are trends that are not going away. Policymakers and other decision makers should keep these trends in mind when it comes time for creating policies aimed at providing or encouraging Internet service.
Descriptors: Access to Computers, Internet, Surveys, Rural Urban Differences, Interviews, Telecommunications, Information Technology, Computer Use, Use Studies, Computers, Educational Technology
Center for Rural Policy and Development. 600 South Fifth Street Suite 211, Saint Peter, MN 56082. Tel: 507-934-7700; Fax: 507-934-7704; e-mail: crpd@ruralmn.org; Web site: http://www.ruralmn.org
Publication Type: Reports - Research; Numerical/Quantitative Data
Education Level: N/A
Audience: Policymakers
Language: English
Sponsor: W.K. Kellogg Foundation; Blandin Foundation, Grand Rapids, MN.; McKnight Foundation; Minnesota Telecom Alliance (MTA); Networks United for Rural Voice
Authoring Institution: Center for Rural Policy and Development
Identifiers - Location: Minnesota
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A