Variance by Region

There are some differences in overall home Internet access penetration along regional lines, with the highest penetration in British Columbia (74 per cent) and Ontario (71 per cent). By contrast, households in Quebec (58 per cent) and Atlantic Canada (61 per cent) comprise Canada’s least connected by region [Table 7a].

The penetration of high-speed home access along regional lines follows a slightly different pattern than overall penetration rates. High-speed home access penetration has an east to west orientation, with penetration rates rising incrementally from Atlantic Canada to British Columbia.

• 28 per cent of Atlantic and Quebec households have high-speed, leaving these regions as the least likely to have this level of home access.
• At 39 per cent, Ontario and Prairie households are slightly more likely to have high-speed relative to the national average.
• Alberta and British Columbia households are significantly more likely to have high-speed access, 46 per cent and 48 per cent respectively.

Variance by Rural/Urban Location

There continues to be a 10-percentage point gap in overall home Internet access penetration along rural/urban lines [Table 7a].

The gap in penetration of high-speed access is, however, far more pronounced. This substantial disparity is largely reflective of the continued need for investment in broadband infrastructure in rural areas.

• 59 per cent of rural households and 69 per cent in urban households have home Internet access.
• 43 per cent of urban households have high-speed Internet access.
• Less than half that number, 19 per cent, of rural households have high-speed Internet access.