Fast web access is encouraging more people to
express themselves online, research suggests.
A quarter of broadband users in Britain regularly upload content and have
personal sites, according to a report by UK think-tank Demos.
It said that having an always-on, fast connection is changing the way people
use the internet.
More than five million households in the UK have broadband and that number
is growing fast.
Bits for broadband
The Demos report looked at the impact of broadband on people's net habits.
It found that more than half of those with broadband logged on to the web
before breakfast.
One in five even admitted to getting up in the middle of the night to browse
the web.More significantly, argues the report, broadband is encouraging
people to take a more active role online.
It found that one in five post something on the net everyday, ranging from
comments or opinions on sites to uploading photographs.
"Broadband is putting the 'me' in media as it shifts power from institutions
and into the hands of the individual," said John Craig, co-author of the
Demos report.
"From self-diagnosis to online education, broadband creates social
innovation that moves the debate beyond simple questions of access and
speed."
The Demos report, entitled Broadband Britain: The End Of Asymmetry?, was
commissioned by net provider AOL.
"Broadband is moving the perception of the internet as a piece of technology
to an integral part of home life in the UK," said Karen Thomson, Chief
Executive of AOL UK, "with many people spending time on their computers as
automatically as they might switch on the television or radio."
According to analysts Nielsen//NetRatings, more than 50% of the 22.8 million
UK net users regularly accessing the web from home each month are logging on
at high speed
They spend twice as long online than people on dial-up connections, viewing
an average of 1,444 pages per month.
The popularity of fast net access is growing, partly fuelled by fierce
competition over prices and services.
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