In the developed world, the first digital gold rush was marked by early adopters and the elite, mostly young men with higher levels of education. They felt the Internet was overly technical and many still feel overwhelmed by technology.
Women are more likely than men to mention their desire to access the Internet for e-mail.
We're on the verge of witnessing the true democratization of the Internet. There is a tendency to assume the 'North American' model of web access from a home PC is the only way the Web will continue to develop.