Dial-Up in Down Times

UNDATED (AP) - Sure, everybody would like to have a sports car. But if money is tight, most people would be satisfied with something that could get them from point A to point B. It's possible a similar thing is happening with Internet service these days.

Some recession-minded consumers are taking another look at dial-up Internet service as an alternative to faster and pricier options. And that is giving hope to companies that still provide dial-up service.

An official with Earthlink says with times as tough as they are, "there's still a big market out there" for dial-up. The company is trying to take advantage of that by offering a dial-up offer of $7.95 per month. That's $2 less than its closest competitors.

AOL has about 7 million dial-up customers in the US , down from its peak of nearly 27 million.