Smartphone-only internet users grow from 12% in 2016 to 20% in 2018

A growing number of US households are exclusively accessing the internet via smartphones, according to a new report from the Pew Research Center. While much of the discussion about cord cutting in the US is focused on households that are canceling cable or satellite TV services, this latest finding indicates the trend is now expanding into broadband services. “The number of people who are smartphone-only internet users—meaning they own a smartphone but do not have traditional home broadband service—has grown from 12% in 2016 to 20% this year,” according to the latest survey. Moreover, while the proportion of American adults with high-speed broadband service at home has steadily increased since 2000, adoption rates have been declining since 2016. Saturation levels may have peaked in 2016 when 73% of US residents had broadband service at home. As of the beginning of 2018, adoption dipped to 65%.