Internet Use: Problematic?

I spent the last post discussing how the Internet has benefitted society (particularly adolescents). Now I will discuss the potential ways in which it has been harmful.
The questions that need to be addressed, as a result of the ever-increasing amount of Internet use in the world, are the following: Is increased usage of the Internet becoming a substitute for important offline communication? Is this substitution hindering important social and communication skills? Will these skills always be needed in real life?
Let me address the first question. "Is increased usage of the Internet becoming a substitute for important offline communication?" I think I can respond to this best with a "case study" that took place completely by accident in my life last week. It was Thursday afternoon, and I was in my apartment "studying" (in other words, wasting time on the Internet). Suddenly the power went out, leaving everyone in the apartment complex disconnected simultaneously.
What happened next? The answer may not be too hard to guess. Everyone suddenly had to find something else to do because the Internet was no longer available. Not knowing what to do on their own without Internet availability, in just two minutes most of the people who were at home ended up outside their apartments talking. Almost everyone who was home came outside!
The power remained out for about two hours. During this time, we played several games and had a great time. People came and left as they desired.
After this, I realized that this was a "social experiment," conducted completely by accident, and that I had just gotten a firsthand look at what would happen if the Internet were suddenly no longer available. My theory is that all these people (including me) were using the Internet to communicate in some way, while meeting their own "needs" in the process. When the power cord was cut, they had to resort to another way to find connection with other people!
I think the clear answer to our above question is "yes." The Internet is substituting not just for some of our communication, but quite possibly a significant amount of it!
Now let's look at the second question: "Is this substitution hindering important social and communication skills?"
In the past it has been my belief that use of the Internet as a substitute for in-person communication hindered psychosocial skills. I determined this by the fact that it seemed easier for me to talk with people in person when I wasn't spending as much time online. However, a study by Robert S. Tokunaga and Stephen A. Rains seems to propose the opposite: Poor psychosocial skills lead to greater use of the Internet to communicate (1). At any rate, it is obvious to researchers generally that there is a correlation; however, the question of causation doesn't seem to be decided.
Finally, the last question. "Will these social and communication skills always be needed in real life?" I don't believe anyone knows the answer to this question, but it is interesting to consider. Will the future be like the movie Wall-E, in which all the people are entirely dependent upon their technology? As technology evolves, it will be intriguing to witness the effects, and to see the direction in which it takes the world as a whole.

1) Tokunaga, Robert S; Rains, Stephen A. "An Evaluation of Two Characterizations of the Relationships Between Problematic Internet Use, Time Spent Using the Internet, and Psychosocial Problems." Human Communication Research 36 (2010): 512-45. Print.