San Francisco Leads In Speed

Those that can’t live without Internet access should head to San Francisco, Calif., where the locale has earned the distinction of being the second most unwired city, and the first in broadband usage.

The America Online survey of 3,600 U.S. adults in 18 markets calculated the rankings on the number of people using broadband connections at home and the amount of time that they have had them; the number of people who intend to get broadband in the next 12 months; the number of hours people with broadband connections spend online; and the variety of online activities conducted by people with broadband connections.

San Francisco vs. Everybody Else
	San Francisco	Survey Average
How many have high-speed at home?	55%	49%
How long have they had broadband?	Almost 2 years	19 months
How many hours per week spent online?	22.4 hours	23 hours
Source: AOL

Additionally, 15 percent of Bay Area residents plan to get broadband in the next 12 months.

The broadband users that were surveyed said they could get more things accomplished online with broadband, and felt that they saved an average of 3.5 hours per week because of the enhanced capabilities and speed their high-speed connection delivered. AOL determined that broadband users were already spending 3 more hours per week online than those that dialed-up, indicating that broadband users are getting more done in less time.

After checking email, the most popular online activities conducted by broadband users in San Francisco are: shopping or researching products (80 percent); participating in polls (77 percent); checking news and headlines (71 percent); paying bills (50 percent); downloading or listening to music (46 percent); and playing games online (44 percent).

In San Francisco alone, 41 percent of the broadband users say the Internet is their number one source for current event and entertainment information – over the television, newspaper and radio. Additionally, 68 percent of people with broadband connections say they feel better informed because of the immediate, up-to-date access to local and national news high-speed programming provides. Overall, 74 percent of people throughout the 18 markets surveyed said that they also felt better informed since using a broadband connection to access the Internet.

The rankings seem evenly dispersed among the country, with California, Florida, and North Carolina claiming two spots each.

Top 10 Cities for Broadband
1.	San Francisco, CA
2.	Tampa, FL
3.	Boston, MA
4.	Houston, TX
5.	Charlotte, NC
6.	Los Angeles, CA
7.	New York, NY
8.	Raleigh, NC
9.	Orlando, FL
10.	Seattle, WA
Source: America Online

In terms of Internet penetration, Nielsen//NetRatings puts San Francisco in 4^th place, trailing Seattle, Boston, and San Diego.

Internet Penetration of Top Internet Markets, March 2003, (U.S., at-home)
Market	Penetration of households
Seattle	80.6%
Boston	79.1%
San Diego	78.7%
San Francisco	78.3%
Hartford/New Haven	76.8%
Portland	76.1%
Washington DC	74.0%
Kansas City	73.4%
Sacramento	72.1%
Columbus	70.4%
Source: Nielsen//NetRatings