There’s a new report out by Pew Internet & American Life.

Here’s the good news

• 55% of adult Americans now have broadband internet connections at home, up from 47% who had high-speed access at home last year at this time.
• Many (on third) pay for premium services; and they pay more than they did last year.
• As of April, 2008 55Broadband has climbed for older, rural and middle income Americans

Here’s the bad news

• Home broadband adoption decreased for low-income Americans (those making les than $20,000).
• Most folks who don’t have broadband say they aren’t interested in giving up their dialup.
• 14% of dial-up users – and 24% of dial-up users in rural America – say that broadband service would have to become available where they live.
• Roughly one-quarter (27%) of adult Americans are not internet users.

Here’s the interesting news (in my opinion)

• Premium broadband users do an average 19% more online tasks on the typical day than the average broadband user.

It seems as if broadband users wouldn’t go back; they are willing to spend more and they perform more tasks with the faster broadband they use. But the dialup and non-users seem just as adamant. I wonder if there is a way – or even a reason – to tap into that group.

I think of my mother-in-law in Dublin. She has never used a computer and I know she never will – but I know she liked having access through me. Anytime she wanted a phone number, reservations or the history of something mentioned on the news, she’d ask me to look it up online. I think if she had ever used a computer – even an ATM, that we could have sold her on the idea. I suspect that there are more folks who simply need to have a good experience with the Internet to see the value.

I guess the other question is – of the folks who aren’t online, how many of them are like my mother-in-law, a call away from the Internet – calling a friend, family member or librarian to use the Internet on their behalf.