Industry Overview
The ability to quickly transmit information over long distances has become an important part of modern life. The Internet has changed the way people find and use information to communicate, work, shop, learn, and live. Internet service providers, Web search portals, and data processing services provide the information backbone of the Internet and World Wide Web. They connect people with information and relay information from people.

Internet service providers (ISPs) directly connect people, businesses, and organizations to the Internet by routing data being sent and received to the desired location. Unlike individual users of the Internet, ISPs must develop and maintain the physical, technical, and contractual connections and agreements with other ISPs to enable the transmission of data. There is no single connection point for the Internet, so ISPs typically need many bilateral and multilateral peering agreements to exchange data through peering points, which are physical connections between the computer equipment of service providers for the purpose of allowing other service providers access to their network of connections. These points-of-presence between ISPs provide a nearly unlimited number of potential connection pathways between data and end users.

In addition to connecting to other ISPs to form the infrastructure of the Internet, service providers must also connect with clients. These clients may range from individual homes to large office buildings. To allow end users to access their networks, establishments in the industry may provider customers with proprietary software, user identification names, e-mail addresses, or equipment. Like telephone or electric service, ISPs offer access to customers on a subscription basis. They may also provide related services beyond Internet access, such as Web hosting, Web page design, and consulting services related to networking software and hardware.

While ISPs connect clients to the Internet by switching and routing data, the physical connections that carry the information to end users are often the wires or cables of telecommunications establishments.

Web search portals canvas the Web to create databases of content and corresponding Internet addresses in a format that is easy to search. These databases can then be searched by typing key words into a prompt on the search portal's Web site. By using search engines to collect the data and then present it in a usable format, these sites enable users to sort through the huge amount of information on the Internet quickly. The search engines that find content on the Web automatically follow every link on a Web page to find new pages to catalogue, and then store their location along with text that can be searched at a later point. Because the Internet offers such a vast array of sites, advanced algorithms must be developed to rank the results of a search according to their relevance. Some Web search portals also offer additional services, such as news, e-mail, translation of Web sites, and local business directories. The key distinction of Web search portals is that the information is gathered automatically from across the Web, rather than manually edited and entered into a predetermined directory. Even though the databases are automatically generated, they must be constantly refreshed as new Web sites emerge and existing ones update their content.

Data processing, hosting, and related services are involved primarily in handling large amounts of data for businesses, organizations, and individuals. Data hosting often takes the form of Web hosting, in which Web site content is placed on a server that allows it to be accessed by users over the Internet. While establishments in this industry host Web sites, the content is typically produced by someone else and then made accessible through the Web hosting service. Other data hosting services allow clients to place electronic data, such as streaming music and video or company databases, onto servers that can be accessed directly through specialized computer programs. An additional service provided by this industry is to simply store old data for archival purposes with no Internet access to it.

Data processing covers a broad range of data services, including data entry, conversion, and analysis. Organizations with large quantities of data on paper may turn to data processing services to enter the data into a computer database by hand or by using optical scanners. Similarly, clients may want old data files or several databases converted to a single, more easily accessible format. Aside from converting data to another format, data processing services also produce reports that summarize the data for better analysis by their clients. While most data hosting companies sell subscription services, data processing services companies often work on projects of defined scope.

The Internet is constantly expanding and evolving, and so are the industries associated with it. Due to constantly changing technology and the relatively low additional cost of most new services, companies are frequently upgrading their existing services and offering new ones to attract or retain customers.

Working Environment 
In 2004, workers in Internet service providers, Web search portals, and data processing services averaged 37.6 hours per week, compared with 33.7 for all industries. The average in Internet service providers and Web search portals was 38.2, while the average in data processing, hosting, and related services was 37.4.

Most workers in this industry work in quiet offices, sitting at computer monitors most of the time. While most usually work a standard 40-hour workweek, there are numerous exceptions. Customer service representatives may work weekends, evenings, or holidays to support customers. As a result, the occupation is well suited to flexible work schedules. Some computer specialists may be required to work unusual or long hours at times to fix problems or perform routine maintenance. In order to minimize the disruptive impact of scheduled maintenance and updates, many Internet service providers and data hosting services perform major work at night or on the weekends. Even though major projects are typically tested before implementation if possible, there may be periods of stress and long work hours before and after implementation deadlines. Similarly, long hours and intense work may be required to fix unexpected problems arising from system upgrades, viruses, or malicious attacks by computer hackers. The very popularity of Web search portals has made them particularly attractive targets for hackers.

Employment
Internet service providers, Web search portals, and data processing services provided 388,000 wage and salary jobs in 2004. Data processing, hosting, and related services accounted for about 70 percent of the jobs, with the other 30 percent in ISPs and Web search portals. Due to the relatively low capital costs of equipment for data hosting services and the geographic distribution of ISPs, 87 percent of establishments have fewer than 20 workers (chart 1). For the same reasons, self-employed workers make up a larger proportion of employment than in most industries.

While this industry can be found in every State, employment is concentrated in a few areas. Just five States -- California, Texas, Florida, Virginia, and New York -- account for about 40 percent of employment in the industry.

Degree Paths into this Industry
In order to provide Internet and data services, this industry employs a wide range of occupations. Computer specialists are the largest group and account for approximately 34 percent of wage and salary employment in the industry. With nearly the same employment, office and administrative support occupations make up about 34 percent of jobs. An additional 18 percent of workers are in management, business, and financial occupations, with other occupations accounting for about 14 percent.

Computer specialists work to develop and maintain the computer equipment and software programs that form the basis of the Internet. Computer programmers write, test, and customize the detailed instructions, called programs or software, that computers follow to perform various functions such as connecting to the Internet or displaying a Web page. Programmers break down tasks into a logical series of simple commands for the computer to implement, using programming languages such as C++ or Java. Computer software engineers, often simply called computer engineers, analyze user needs to formulate software specifications, and then design, develop, test, and evaluate programs to meet these requirements. While computer software engineers must possess strong programming skills, they generally focus on developing logical instructions that are coded by computer programmers.

Computer and information systems managers are the largest of the management, business, and financial occupations, due to the nature of the industry. They plan, coordinate, and direct the activities of computer specialists to ensure that the internal and external computer systems meet the needs of users or clients. Because the industry is primarily engaged in facilitating data transmission over the Internet, these managers work closely with top executives or clients to set schedules for implementing Web sites, performing system maintenance, or installing new hardware and software.

Industry Forecast
Internet service providers, Web search portals, and data processing services are expected to experience 28 percent growth in wage and salary employment between 2004 and 2014, faster than the 14 percent projected for the economy as a whole. This growth will vary by industry sector, with Internet service providers and Web search portals growing at 16 percent, and data processing, hosting, and related services growing at 33 percent.

As the number of people connecting to the Internet continues to increase, ISPs will enjoy growing demand for their services. While the percent of the population connecting to the Internet is unlikely to continue rising at the pace of the 1990s, there should still be a considerable increase stemming from population growth. Changes in the way in which people access the Internet also should drive growth as the demand for wireless connectivity, broadband service, and more points of connection increases. Despite their differences, both urban and rural areas should benefit from this growth, with urban areas expanding wireless networks and rural areas expanding broadband connectivity. The rapid pace of technological advancement in this industry also should generate growth as networks are continuously upgraded to improve performance.

However, consolidation of Internet service providers should temper employment growth in this industry sector, as will the growth of cable and telephone service providers offering Internet access through their networks. When Internet access is coupled with another service, the related employment may be counted as part of another industry, such as the telecommunications industry.

Every day, new content is added to the Web. Sorting through this data and organizing it for search portals is an unending task, and the number of pages grows exponentially. In addition, there are numerous pages that are not accurately catalogued due to the technical difficulties associated with them. The need to keep up with all this content should ensure strong growth for Web search portals over the next decade. Further growth should come from an increase in the number and scope of additional services beyond simple search functions as Web search portals compete for users and look for additional sources of revenue.

As the number of Internet users has grown, so has the number of businesses, organizations, and individuals providing information and services primarily through Web sites. This can range from simple text to retail or subscription music services. Whatever the content, the continuing growth in the number of such sites should drive strong employment growth in data processing, hosting, and related services. Increasing concerns over security also will require more advanced technical solutions, resulting in further job growth within the industry. Both data hosting services and data processing centers also should experience employment growth as the result of the continued need to input paper records into computer files and to convert older, archived data to newer formats.

In ISPs and Web search portals, job opportunities should be best for computer specialists, such as computer software engineers and network systems and data communications analysts. There should be strong continuing demand for these and other computer specialists to maintain and upgrade the systems that keep users connected and the search engines that make the Web navigable. As companies in this industry continue to add services and content, they will need these workers to implement the changes. Demand for computer specialists also should experience solid growth in data processing, hosting, and related services, particularly in Web hosting services.

Related Degree Fields

• Computer Engineering
• Computer Science
• Mathematics
• Software Engineering
• Statistics

Professional Associations/Resources

• Federation of Internet Solution Providers of the Americas
• Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Computer Society
• Internet Service Providers Association
• U.S. Internet Provider Association
• Software Engineering Association

Note: Some resources in this section are provided by the US Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.