New data regarding Internet use outside the United States teaches some interesting lessons.
The new electronic independence recreates the world in the image of a global village. The idea was that the means of communication has a greater influence on people than the information itself. As the latest medium to take the world by storm, the Internet has even more promise than television to turn the world into a small village. More than half the households in the United States have Internet access, but the rest of the world is still largely unwired. The United States is blessed with a telecommunications structure that allows for flat-rate pricing, which encourages long surfing sessions and has contributed to the rapid adoption of the Internet.