The Digital Divide in U.S. Mobile Technology and Speeds

High-speed Internet access, or broadband, is critical to economic opportunity, job creation, education, and civic engagement. Yet, there is a digital divide between people who have access to high speed Internet/advanced telecommunications, and those who do not. Currently, most of the discussion regarding the digital divide focuses on access to fixed broadband networks.

In this paper, we examine the digital divide as it relates to mobile broadband. Specifically, we explore the following two research questions. First, is there a digital divide in how certain groups access mobile broadband as measured by the mobile connection technology? Second, is there a digital divide in the quality of their mobile broadband as measured by download and upload speeds?