The Digital Divide and Economic Benefits of Broadband access

This issue brief provides an overview of the state of broadband in the United States using the most recent data available from the 2014 American Community Survey. The main findings highlighted in the issue brief include:

• The number of U.S. households subscribing to the Internet has risen 50 percent from 2001 to 2014, and three-quarters of American households currently subscribe;
• A digital divide remains, however, with just under half of households in the bottom income quintile using the Internet at home, compared to 95 percent of households in the top quintile;
• Supply-side factors may also have an important influence on the rate of broadband subscription: areas with more wireline providers have higher Internet subscription rates;
• Broadband provides numerous socio-economic benefits to communities and individuals, improving labor market outcomes for subscribers, increasing economic growth, providing access to better health care, and enhancing civic participation;
• Academic research shows that using online job search leads to better labor market outcomes, including faster re-employment for unemployed individuals, yet because of a digital divide, low-income households are less able to use these tools than high-income households;
• Unemployed workers in households with Internet were 4 percentage points more likely to be employed one month in the future than those in households without Internet. This difference persists over time.