The United States Internet Industry Association (USIIA) today – along with Net Literacy – released a white paper titled Digital Inclusion: Bringing The Rest Of America Online With Broadband. The issue of adoption – or put more plainly ensuring that Americans who have access to high-speed Internet choose to take advantage – has picked up steam of late – in particular because of the provision in the Stimulus package that allocates resources for such programs. According to the Pew Internet and American Life Project, the primary factor in Americans choosing not to adopt broadband is not price – and it’s not because they don’t have access – it’s that “they’re not interested.” The Field of Dreams analogy “If you build it … they will come” does not apply to the nation’s ever-expanding broadband infrastructure. We need to make sure that everyone understands the health, economic, education and environmental benefits associated with America’s broadband networks.

Which makes the release of this white paper incredibly timely as it takes a deeper look at these issues and suggests 5 items that the authors feel will aid greatly in helping Americans to realize the broadband promise:

1. Create a national Digital Inclusion initiative to drive broadband adoption;

2. Create community center education programs to communicate the value proposition for broadband;

3. Create a flexible and customizable curriculum for use in each community center;

4. Provide for a “Student Net Literacy Corps,” and

5. Provide computers to low-income Americans who do not have them.

You can access the entire study by clicking here and to hear from the primary voices behind the paper’s findings, click here to listen to a podcast with Dave McClure, President and CEO, USIIA, and Daniel Kent, founder and member of the board of directors, Net Literacy.

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