It's the end of the millennium, and businesses across the country are scrambling to get online, right?

Apparently not, according to a recent survey by Toronto-based Andover Research Associates, Inc. The survey of 809 randomly selected senior managers was conducted between Aug. 10 and Aug. 19, and reveals that of the 54.5 per cent of Canadian businesses that do not currently have Internet access, almost 70 per cent are not interested in getting it in the next year.

This disinterest in joining the online community is also varied geographically. In Newfoundland, for instance, only 16 per cent of companies are online, while 73 per cent of those in New Brunswick have Internet access.

The study turned up some other marketplace figures. For instance, although over 90 per cent of managers at Internet-using companies claim to be satisfied with the quality and cost of their companies' Internet service, over one quarter (28 per cent) are considering switching ISPs in the next year.

The poll also looked at which ISPs Canadian businesses are using. Surprisingly, small, local ISPs lead the way, capturing 42 per cent of the overall market. This was followed, though not closely, by local telcos, which control 16.1 per cent, and Sympatico, which controls 13.1 per cent. None of the other "big name" providers, including AOL, CompuServe, Rogers, iDirect and Sprint control more than 3.8 per cent of the total business Internet market.

One section of the study noted large companies are more likely to be online, though smaller companies have a greater percentage of their employees online.

"We did find a relationship between the company size and the number of companies of that size connected," said Peter Asseltine, director of WatchPoint Information Services at Andover Research. "The larger companies are more likely to have online access provided, but not necessarily to all their employees. The most likely employee to be online is an employee in a small to medium-sized company."

Two-thirds of managers who are online believe their firms' Internet usage will increase over the next 12 months, while an additional 32 per cent believe their Internet use will stay at current levels. Only two per cent expect to use less Internet service in the year to come.

So, while the rush to get online may be subsiding, with most of the companies that desire Internet connectivity already hooked up, Asseltine suggested resellers can expect to see demand for increased levels of Internet service.

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