Broadband Adoption in Low-Income Communities

The SSRC was commissioned by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to analyze the factors shaping low rates of adoption of home broadband services in low-income and other marginalized communities. The resulting study is one of the only large-scale qualitative investigations of barriers to adoption in the US, and complements recent FCC survey research on adoption designed to inform the 2010 National Broadband Plan. The study draws on some 170 interviews of non-adopters, community access providers, and other intermediaries conducted across the US in late 2009 and early 2010.

At the broadest level, it finds that:

1. Broadband access is increasingly a requirement of socio-economic inclusion, not an outcome of it—and residents of low-income communities know this.
2. Price is only one factor shaping the fragile equilibrium of home broadband adoption, and price pressures go beyond the obvious challenge of high monthly fees. Hardware costs, hidden fees, billing transparency, quality of service, and availability are major issues for low-income communities.
3. Libraries and other community organizations fill the gap between low home adoption and high community demand, and provide a number of other critical services, such as training and support. These support organizations are under severe pressure to meet community connectivity needs, leading to widespread perceptions of a crisis in the provider community.

The study points to a number of specific conclusions and recommendations, including:

• Un-adoption -- the loss of home broadband service -- is a serious and under-recognized problem in the larger broadband dynamic. In our sample of non-adopters, 22% were un-adopters. Income fluctuations played the most significant roles in respondents' accounts of un-adoption, but unpredictable service costs and opaque billing practices also figured frequently. Closer investigation of these practices and their effects is needed, but our work suggests that modest, consumer-friendly changes in these practices might improve the sustainability of broadband use in these communities.
• Complaints about quality of service, billing transparency, and more basic issues of availability were nearly universal in our respondent pool. Doubts about the accuracy of service provider claims of coverage were particularly troubling given the reliance of government agencies on those providers for data. We also found significant differences between theoretical coverage and practical, accessible service in many communities. The frequency of such complaints clearly signals the need for further investigation.
• Cost-shifting onto community organizations needs to be met with additional funding of those organizations. Government agencies, school systems, and large employers increasingly privilege web-based access to many basic services, including job and benefits applications. Because many of the constituents for these services have limited Internet access and/or limited Internet proficiency, these measures often shift human and technical support costs onto libraries and other community organizations that do provide access, in-person help, and training. Fuller funding of these intermediaries is the best means of assuring a meaningful broadband safety net and a stronger pathway to adoption in these communities.