Best of the ISP-Lists

Smell the Roses

Are people using the broadband Internet less, or are they using it more efficiently? As members of the ISP-Marketing list discuss broadband usage trends, one might wonder—perhaps people are stepping outdoors?

[December 29, 2000]

On the ISP-Marketing list in December, MB worried,

"I've seen a number of reports lately that say people are online less. What do you think this means?"

Some respondents contended it's just a logical step in the progression towards more complex content:

[CDP observed] "The 'gee whiz' luster of the Internet has worn off. In that regard, it's like television. Remember the advent of cable TV? I got HBO circa 1977, and every night I wanted to watch HBO. Now I can't remember the last time I watched it. Does that mean the Internet is dead as a commercial medium? No, but it does mean that the easy money is gone."

[MS admitted] "I personally am spending a lot less time online now. I used to spend five hours a night after work, and more on weekends, surfing, chatting, playing games, etc. Now I am online for maybe an hour a night after work. I think the web has begun to lose its luster. The next big thing will be when TV and the Internet are truly and fully integrated—then we will see a new medium emerge. Of course, broadband must become more commonplace first."

Others suggested it simply proves there's more to life than you can find on the web:

[DH noted] "Subscribers have filtered the content down to what they want to see. Before, people would 'surf' but now people have their sites bookmarked and they go there, check their e-mail, and maybe hit a site or two that they saw in advertising. Remember, the point behind all this great stuff is to give us more free time—as we become smarter on how to use it, hopefully we are getting some of that free time back!"

[DB agreed] "The Internet is fun and interesting, but you have to keep things in perspective. I myself am past that initial 'Internet as a novelty' mindset. I use it for information and communication, but I don't live through it like I did years ago."

[TN added] "The Internet began with the computer junkies, the people who spend 200 hours a month online. The new users coming on board are the people that have never used a computer before, let alone the Internet. To them it isn't something they want to use eight hours per day, but a convenience for information and communicating."

[HC observed] "The truth is, the world is a whole lot more compelling when you walk out that front door, rather than spending hours in front of a monitor."

—End