HOW MUCH DOES INTERNET ACCESS COST?
Methods Which Require Owning a Computer
- Online Services
Online services such as America Online, CompuServe, and Prodigy are the most heavily
advertised and marketed avenues to the Internet, making them the most obvious choice to
the consumer. Along with access to Internet resources such as the World Wide Web and
newsgroups, they also offer their own content and special services. Facing competion from ISPs, online services have dropped their prices to a competetive
level rangin from $19.95/month to $24.95/month for unlimited access. Cheaper rates are
available for limited time online. Users access these services through the telephone
network.
- Internet Service Providers (ISPs)
Internet Service Providers include both national corporations such as Mindspring and Netcom and local companies. They
typically provide SLIP/PPP accounts which allow direct access to the Internet. Unlimited
access is typically $19.95/month. ISPs sometimes charge more for more sophisticated
web-hosting services. Telephone companies such as MCI and AT&T have begun to also
offer access to the Internet.
- Cable on-line services
Cable companies are now developing methods to access the Internet through the existing
cable infrastructure and cable modems. The @Home Network is an example of a growing cable service. Cable modems allow much faster access to the
Internet with data transfer rates as high as 10 Mbps (megabits per second), compared to
analog modems which transfer data at 14.4 - 53 kbps or ISDN modems which transfer data
at 128 kbps. The rates for access are higher than ISPs and online services, ranging from
$29.95 to $49.95 per month.
- Community online services
Community Online services are ISPs which allow access to the Internet either for free or
for significantly reduced cost. On example of these type of services is FreeNet (
a list of FreeNets), which offers free access to limited services on the internet, including e-mail,
usenet newsgroups, text-based web-browsing using lynx, and other locally-based services
(such as local markets). FreeNet is funded by public donations, corporate sponsorships,
and government grants.
Methods Which Do Not Require Owning a Computer
- Internet Appliances
Currently there is a nascent market for internet appliances which allow Internet access
without an expensive computer. These specialized devices come with built-in modems and
use a television set as the display. WebTV is the leader in this market,
selling Internet devices ranging from $100-$300. Owners of WebTV must also pay a
monthly rate of $19.95 for access to the Internet. Services are limited to e-mail, web
browsing, and other special content offered by WebTV.
- Public Libraries
Anyone can use the internet terminals commonly found at public libraries to do
research and browse the web. Also, anyone with access to the world wide web has access
to e-mail through
services such as Hotmail. Thus even the most poverty-stricken members of society have an opportunity to access the Internet.
- Schools
With the help of grassroots movements like NetDay the dream
of having all public schools connected to the internet is becoming a reality. The
Telecommunications Act of 1996 also expanded the coverage of universal access (link to
section on Universal Access), leading to legislative measures that requires Internet Service
Providers to have discounted rates to poorly funded schools and libraries. Thus in the
scope of several years from now, all K-12 students will have access to the Internet through
their schools. Also, nearly all undergraduate and graduate students also have free internet access through their college or university.
schools.
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