U.S. household broadband penetration continues to rise: 78% of Americans access the Internet at home via broadband services, according to a report from Leichtman Research Group (LRG). Ninety-four percent of all U.S. households with Internet connections have broadband connections, moreover, up from 92% in 2012, according to LRG’s, “Broadband Access & Services in the Home 2013.”
Eighty-three percent of all U.S. households have Internet service, in line with last year’s percentage. More Americans are accessing the Internet via smartphones, however, which is driving broadband growth, Leichtman found.
Fifty-five percent of U.S. adults access the Internet via smartphones, according to Leichtman’s research, up from 44% a year ago.
“While overall online penetration at home has flattened, broadband has grown by attracting previous narrowband customers, late-adopters of online at home, and movers into new households,” commented LRG president and principal analyst Bruce Leichtman. “Despite an increasingly limited base of potential new subscribers, and some customers opting to solely access the Internet on a smartphone, broadband will continue to grow at a modest pace for the next few years.”
Other highlights of the report include:
- 9% of all households have broadband access but don’t subscribe to a multi-channel video service, compared to 8% in the past two years;
- 64% of broadband subscribers also access the Internet on a smartphone – compared to 52% last year;
- 19% of all not online at home access the Internet using a smartphone as compared to 12% in 2012;
- 1% of households paid to subscribe to Internet service at home in the past year, do not currently subscribe, and do not plan to subscribe again in the next six months;
- Less than 1% of all online households say that broadband is not available in their area as compared to 6% in 2008;
- 42% of households with annual incomes <$30,000 do not use a laptop or desktop computer
