Telstra Connected Students: Lessons for Digital Inclusion

Summary of Findings Connected Students found: • Access to an affordable and quality internet service is critical to digital inclusion. • Low-income households need plans that provide quality and reliable connectivity at reasonable price points. • Affordability is about more than the cost of connecting to the internet. • Suitable and available devices are critical to digital inclusion. • Individual device access is another element to digital inclusion. Sharing access to devices in households can be impractical. • Interventions at the individual level can improve digital inclusion at the household level. • Students in disrupted living situations, such as frequently moving house, have difficulty accessing a quality internet connection. • Digital skills and access to technical support also impact inclusion. • Low-income households prioritise internet connectivity in their spending – they place a high value on it. • Affordability barriers are not limited to the lowest income bracket or solely experienced by those households.