According to the Pew Internet & American Life survey only 20% of Americans have never used the Internet; I was surprised because I actually thought it was higher. About 70% percent of white Americans use the Internet, compared to about 57% percent of blacks.

Internet Usage in US:
68% – occasionally use
32% – don’t use
20% – never used
57% – blacks use
70% – whites use

As expected, Internet usage numbers are constantly changing, however more dramatically they are changing in San Francisco. Google has decided to offer FREE wireless Internet connections (Wifi) throughout the Golden Gate Bridge city. The search engine giant has decided that an Internet connection is a “fundamental right”. What’s in it for Google? Besides the promotional power of free Internet service, the search mogul will require users to use their product GoogleTalk to instant message (IM) and chat. The pure genius behind this free Wifi promotion is the requirement to use their IM software, which has been struggling behind AOL’s Instant Messenger software. With more and more people being connected to the Internet everyday, eventually the web will not just be seen as something we use occasionally, it will be a communication device we rely on like the telephone. Wait a minute… isn’t my telephone connected to the Internet already?