Millions of New Yorkers lack high-speed Internet access, exacerbating the digital divide in New York City, according to “Internet Inequality: Broadband Access in NYC,” a new report released today by New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer. The Comptroller’s report uses data from the Census Bureau’s 2013 American Community Survey of households on broadband subscriptions and computer ownership to illustrate patterns and trends of internet access among New Yorkers.
“New Yorkers who don’t have online access lack the tools they need to improve their education, employment and business opportunities,” Comptroller Stringer said. “Just as the subway powered New York’s growth in the 20th century, high-speed broadband will power our City’s economic competitiveness in the 21st century. If we are to remain the global city, we can’t allow our peers to speed by while New Yorkers are left on the shoulder of the information superhighway. Slow and steady does not win this race.”
Citywide, 27 percent (730,000) of New York City households lack broadband Internet at home and 17 percent (533,000) of households do not even have a computer at home. The report revealed troubling disparities based on age, education level, employment status, race, and neighborhood:
More than one-third (34 percent) of households in the Bronx lack broadband at home, compared to 30 percent in Brooklyn, 26 percent in Queens, 22 percent in Staten Island, and 21 percent in Manhattan;
40 percent of those with less than a high school education lack broadband at home compared to 11 percent of those with a bachelors or more;
27 and 26 percent of Black and Hispanic households, respectively, lack broadband at home, compared to 21 percent of White households and 15 percent of Asian households;
21 percent of New York City youth (0-18 years) lack broadband at home, as do 45 percent of seniors (65+); and
Nearly half (47 percent) of households in Brooklyn Community District 12 (Borough Park, Kensington, and Ocean Parkway) lack broadband at home, while only 11 percent of households in Manhattan Community Districts 1 and 2 (Battery Park City, Greenwich Village, and Soho) lack access.
Ensuring that all New Yorkers have access to fast, reliable, affordable broadband is critical to the City’s economic competitiveness. While consumers in cities across the country and around the world—from Seoul and Paris to Kansas City and Chattanooga—can spend less than $70 per month for a one gigabit connection, the top speed available for most consumers in New York City is half the speed of those cities (500 megabits), at a cost of more than four times that ($299.99 a month).
“It is startling just how great the divide is in our City is when it comes to accessing high-speed Internet. We must work collaboratively to ensure that all residents have the ability to access high-speed Internet at home and across the City,” Stringer said.
To read the full report, please click here.
– See more at: http://comptroller.nyc.gov/newsroom/comptroller-stringer-report-reveals-the-scope-of-internet-inequality-in-new-york-city/#sthash.5W9M2xVJ.dpuf
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