8% of California Households Dependent on Smartphones

A large majority of California households have high-speed Internet service, but only 8 percent use a smartphone to get online, according to a new statewide survey that showed a narrowing of the digital divide. Overall, nearly four in five households there, or 79 percent, have a broadband connection at home – including DSL, cable, satellite, fiber optic to a desktop, laptop or tablet computer and through a smartphone – which is up from 75 percent last year, according to the survey (pdf) released June 16 by The Field Poll on behalf of the nonprofit California Emerging Technology Fund, which promotes broadband deployment and adoption.