33% Report Internet Access is a ‘Fundamental Resource’

Demonstrating the increasing role of the network in people’s lives, an international workforce study announced last week by Cisco revealed that one in three college students and young professionals (33%) believes that the Internet is a fundamental resource for the human race – as important as air, water, food and shelter. In addition, about half (49% of college students and 47% of employees) believe it is “pretty close” to that level of importance. Combined, four of every five college students and young employees believe the Internet is vitally important as part of their daily life’s sustenance.

Case in point, more than half of the respondents (55% of college students and 62% of employees) said they could not live without the Internet and cite it as an “integral part of their lives.” If forced to make a choice, the majority of college students globally – about two of three (64%) – would choose an Internet connection instead of a car.

The 2011 Cisco Connected World Technology Report, examines the relationship between human behavior, the Internet and networking’s pervasiveness. It uses this relationship to provoke thoughts around how companies will remain competitive amid the influence of technology lifestyle trends. Here are some additional key highlights from the report:

• Whereas previous generations preferred socializing in person, the next generation is indicating a shift toward online interaction. More than one in four college students globally (27%) said staying updated on Facebook was more important than partying, dating, listening to music or hanging out with friends.
• Two-thirds of students (66%) and more than half of employees (58%) cite a mobile device (laptop, smartphone, tablet) as “the most important technology in their lives.”
• TV’s prominence is decreasing among college students and young employees in favor of mobile devices. Globally, fewer than one in 10 college students (6%) and employees (8%) said the TV is the most important technology device in their daily lives. As TV programming and movies become available on mobile devices, this downward trend is expected to continue.
• Only one of 25 college students and employees (4%) surveyed globally said the newspaper is their most important tool for accessing information.
• One of five students (21%) report that they have not bought a physical book (excluding textbooks required for class) in a bookstore in more than two years – or never at all.
• Seven of 10 employees “friended” their managers and/or co-workers on Facebook, indicating the dissolution of boundaries separating work and private life. Culturally, the United States featured lower percentages of employees friending managers and co-workers – only about one in four (23%) – although two of five friended their co-workers (40%).

The study was commissioned by Cisco and conducted by InsightExpress, a third-party market research firm based in the United States. The global study consists of two surveys – one involving college students, the other utilizing young professionals in their 20s. Each survey includes 100 respondents from each of 14 countries, resulting in a pool of 2,800 respondents. The 14 countries include the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, United Kingdom, France, Spain, Germany, Italy, Russia, India, China, Japan and Australia.

For more, see this release.