Access to computers and the Internet for Americans in all demographic groups and geographic locations soared at the end of 1998, due, in part, to the success of pro-competition policies, the report said. Over 40 percent of U.S. households owned computers, one quarter of all households had Internet access and 94.1 percent of American households were connected by telephone at the end of 1998. But the bright picture is clouded by data that show significant disparities continue between certain demographic groups and regions and, in many cases, the gap between these groups has grown over time, the report said. Whites are more likely to have access to the Internet from home than Blacks or Hispanics have from any location.
Rural areas are less likely to be connected than urban areas.
Regardless of income level, those living in rural areas are lagging behind in computer and Internet access. At some income levels, those in urban areas are 50 percent more likely to have Internet access than those earning the same income in rural areas. The report recommended that pro-competition policies continue to be vigorously pursued as part of the overall plan to close the digital divide. Community access centers such as schools and libraries will play an important part in helping to increase access by all Americans to information technologies in the short-term, it said. The 1998 data illustrate that community access centers have been particularly well used by groups that lack access at home or at work.