Issues of the Digital Divide

1. Issues of the Digital Divide

2. Digital Divide Defined • In 1970’s NGO’s warned of growing gap between haves and have-nots • Universal Service and Universal Access in the telecommunications tradition

3. Digital Divide Defined • “. . .an inequality in access, distribution, and use of information and communication technologies between two or more populations.” (p. 300) • Can be within one nation-state or among many (Intranational vs. International)

4. The Global Divide: Access • Physical Access--Where are the ICTs? • Financial Access--Who can afford them? • Cognitive Access--What can they utilize? • Design Access--How well can they interpret? • Content Access--What is relevant? • Production Access--What can they contribute? • Institutional Access--What bodies help or hinder them? • Political Access--Who participates in the decisions?

5. Global Divide: Beyond Access • Distinction between Formal and Informal Access • Participation and Engagement more key to the issues • Average citizens vs. Information champions • The more active the information champions, the more evolved the “knowledge society”

6. Demographic Issues • Access is correlated with • Income • Education • Urban proximity • Age • Gender • Ethnicity • Occupation

7. The Costs of ICT Applications Applications Software Hard Infrastructure Soft Infrastructure Training Awareness Basic Education

8. Perspectives on the Divide • Optimists, Pessimists, Structuralists • The state of the current ICT gap • Predictive Trends in ICT and economic trends • Relationship between patterns of ICT inequality and economic inequality • Impact of ICT’s on economic growth • Domestic Shifts brought on by ICT diffusion • Causes of successful diffusion in LCD’s

9. Widening the Divide--Findings • Access Gaps Primarily • Physical • Financial • Content • Cognitive

10. Widening the Divide--Findings • R&D/Intellectual Property—”Haves” control 97% of world’s patents • GDP closely associated with ICT access • Growth rates are as divergent as current comparative statistics • 23 % for the Haves • 18% for the Have-nots

11. Widening the Divide-Findings • Wilson concludes that ICT’s are a major factor in widening income disparity over the past decade • Yet he also asserts there is no link between level of ICT usage and level of economic growth. Why?

12. Widening the Divide • Optimists: might be correct on domestic diffusion, but internationally the findings show the gap widening • Pessimists: Findings seem to support their claims • Structuralists: Supported in that ICT trends follow general global trends

13. Widening the Divide: Corrupt Elites (Would you do business with this man?) Askar Akayev, former President of Kyrgyzstan (Rule of Law and Protection for civil liberties is critical to ensure equal access. )

14. Laws of ICT’s • Moore’s Law • Cost of technology platforms go down the longer they are on the market and as production stays constant • Metcalfe’s Law • “Power of the network increases exponentially by the number of computers connected to it” • Wilson’s Law • “The actual and opportunity costs of exclusion from an interactive community are multidimensional, increase over time, and are borne by both the excluded and society as a whole.”

15. Costs of Exclusion • Consumption/Investment opportunities • Higher costs for goods and services • Lack of access to knowledge as the ICT’s become increasingly complex • Less information re: employment, investments, consumer goods • Decline in social cohesion and connectedness • Less active participation in government and society

16. Costs of Exclusion • Exclusion costs will increase over time as some citizens join the network and others stay put.

17. How to Narrow the Divide? • Encourage investment in human capital • Low levels of government distortion and corruption • Respect for the rule of law and property rights • Sustain an enabling environment for democratic rights and civil liberties

18. Digital Divide Issues-Brazil • Despite increasing ICT development within Brazil, poor Brazilians fall behind due to • Lack of equipment • Education and Training • Illiteracy “This was not a first world problem-we were not going to find a Swedish or Swiss company to solve it for us” –Moura Campos

19. “What Divide?” The Case of China • Wilson attributes the lack of official recognition of divide issues to the following: • Rise of middle class in China put the poor in the shadows • Increase in education/training communicate perception of access and equity • “Politically incorrect” subject due to security concerns.

20. Strategic Restructuring

21. Restructuring the Global System We know why *they* care……… But why does *she*???

22. Why Does the Private Sector Care? • Assessing short/medium term priorities and calculating material, ideological, and political interests lead to private companies wanting to open new markets and protect creative interests.

23. The Thatcher/Reagan Revolution • Strategic restructuring of • Property Rights • Governance rules • Efficiency rules • Distributional norms Comrades-in-Arms?

24. The Clinton Administration • Political support from the private sector • Al Gore champions challenge to public/monopolist telecommunications to expand access and partner with private sector • Why would public leadership advocate giving up their own power?

25. Core Principles of Restructuring Opening national ICT/Telecom Markets to foreign investment Permitting Telecom to be a traded service Ensuring promarket regulatory structures

26. Influences of the Private Sector • When in conflict, private sector companies choose to prioritize rule-making over distribution. • New rules concerning IP, efficiency & private sector leadership constrain any efforts to divide equitably. • Above influence is exacerbated by the shift from state power to private control with ICT’s.

27. Influences of the Private Sector • Power shift • Handling new policy issues • Achieving common business positions • Private-public methods of forming global policy networks • Individual leaders shaping policy (Bill Gates)

28. Continuing Issues • Internet Governance (ICANN) • E-Commerce as a regulated industry • Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS)

29. Distributional Issues Addressed • Private business organizations conclude: • Divide is a result of bad government policy • Private sector best solves inequities • Digital divides are really Digital opportunities • Partnership are important, but Governments should play supporting roles to private interests • Global Information Infrastructure Commission (GIIC) • Global Business Dialogue (GBD(e))

30. Distributional Issues Addressed • The Group of Eight Summits (G8) • 2000 Meeting: Japan selecting digital divide • Prompts Clinton Administration to produce policy and include non-profit and NGO actors in process • Representatives from Developing nations invited for the first time

31. Distributional Issues Addressed • Group of Eight 2000 Summit Results • Government set up task forces • Mobilized high-level interest worldwide • Included NGO’s and previously excluded actors • Brought legitimacy to advocacy concerns of developing countries, but also revealed lack of expertise.

32. Distributional Issues Addressed • Private Firms • Commercial Activities (export and marketing of goods and services) • Philanthropic Activities (“community development”) • Mixed Activities (training to build a population’s cognitive base)

33. Distributional Issues Addressed • Grassroots Activities • Companies and NGO’s driven by social concerns Peoplink.Org Greenstar

34. Distributional Issues-Microfinance Fatima Sarwoni of Namunsi, Uganda The Village “Phone Lady” Grameen Bank: http://www.gfusa.org

35. Questions in Lieu of Conclusions • Why Does the Private Sector Care? • How Important is the Digital Divide? • Is the Digital Divide Narrowing? • What Does the Digital Divide Mean? • Who Should Take Action? • What are the Obstacles?