Growth Of Internet Access Slows Dramatically In U.S.

Reflecting the sluggish economy and sagging PC sales, the growth of Internet usage in U.S. households has slowed from a year ago, according to a report released by Nielsen/NetRatings.

The number of online Americans grew 16 percent from July 2000 to July 2001, a drop from the survey’s reported 41 percent growth in the same time period for the previous year.

“The general economy and the softness of the PC market affects the growth,” said Lisa Strand, chief analyst at NetRatings, adding that the stampede of early adopters has tapered off. “Basically, there was this huge growth two years ago and last year because there was such quick adoption then. For the growth to slow down makes sense.”

Fifty-eight percent of all Americans had Internet access at home as of July 2001, according to the survey, compared with 52 percent in July 2000 and 39 percent the year before. The survey found that 102 million Americans accessed the Internet last month, compared to 88 million a year ago.

Late adopters are accounting for the growth, according to Strand, making the Internet user community more diverse.

“The groups that are growing fastest are those that are not white-collar workers; ethnic minorities have [also] been growing quite a bit,” said Strand. “We’re seeing a greater variety of people coming online. Groups that aren’t traditionally represented are growing at a more rapid pace.”

Though the growth of users has dropped, the amount of time wired Americans spend online has jumped 11 percent, according to the survey. Web users spent about 10 hours and 19 minutes online in July 2001, compared with nine hours and 41 minutes during the same time period last year.

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