WWW: Beyond the Basics

2. Demographics and Demographic Tools

2.6 Concluding Remarks

NuNet Inc. (NNI) in their report Online & Internet Statistics Reality Check,'96 believe there are only 15 million people on-line (encompassing the Internet, World Wide Web and commercial services), accounting for only 6% of the US population and 11% of households. In comparison, Jupiter Communications and Find/SVP in their study The American Home Financial Services Survey suggest an incredible 18.7 million children in the US may have Internet access and about 23 million adults are using the Internet from home, representing U.S. 15.1 million households (Nua, Inc. 96). Why such widely different figures?

The quote from Anamorph's Irresponsible Internet Statistics says it all (Anamorph):

The problem is this: there is no absolute way to measure any statistic regarding the growth of the Internet. As John Quarterman of MIDS says:

The Internet is distributed by nature. This is its strongest feature, since no single entity is in control, and its pieces run themselves, cooperating to form the network of networks that is the Internet. However, because no single entity is control, nobody knows everything about the Internet. Measuring it is especially hard because some parts choose to limit access to themselves to various degrees. So, instead of measurement, we have various forms of surveying and estimation.

So all the statistics presented here are based on estimates and conjecture. And even if they were absolutely true, growth rates change ... that there is only one conclusion that can possibly be drawn from such vague data:

The Internet is getting big, and it's happening fast.

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Copyright © 1996 Mei See Yeoh, All Rights Reserved

Mei See Yeoh <myeoh@vt.edu>
Last modified: Sat Oct 26 13:15:51 1996