The Digital Divide By Brett, Anupama, and Richert

Topics Domestic International Technological Aspects

The Digital Divide “In just about every country, a certain percentage of people has the best information technology that society has to offer. These people have the most powerful computers, the best telephone service and fastest Internet service, as well as a wealth of content and training relevant to their lives. (Excerpt from “Falling Through the Net II.”

There is another group of people. They are the people who for one reason or another don’t have access to the newest or best computers, the most reliable telephone service or the fastest or most convenient Internet services. The difference between these two groups of people is what has been called the ‘Digital Divide.’ (Excerpt from “Falling Through the Net II.”

Digital Divide in America The share of households with Internet access soared by 58%, rising from 26.2% in December 1998 to 41.5% in August More than half of all households (51.0%) have computers, up from 42.1% in December There were million Americans online at some location in August 2000, 31.9 million more than there were only 20 months earlier. The share of individuals using the Internet rose by 35.8%, from 32.7% in December 1998 to 44.4% in August If growth continues at that rate, more than half of all Americans will be using the Internet by the middle of 2001.

Blacks and Hispanics Blacks 23.5% penetration rate Hispanics 23.6% penetration rate compared to 41.5% nationally

Used Cars and Used Computers The market for used cars is six times larger than that for new cars Where is the market for used computers?

Corporate Philanthropy Microsoft, the software giant, last year announced it will donate $100 million in cash and software over 5 years to the Boys and Girls Clubs of America to build 3,000 centers where kids can use PCs Sun Microsystems gives $1 million annually in computers and software to low-income schools in California, Colorado, and Massachusetts Oracle, a database firm, has donated Internet appliances, network equipment and printers to 2,500 classrooms over the past 3 years

City of Houston Free Free use of personal computer software The service will start in three low-income areas, then spread through the city

Inner Cities before Rural Substantial barriers to Internet access in rural America exist due to financial and logistical constraints

Fast Changing Industry Business is going online Government is going online Schools are going online Technology is rapidly changing and internet access in itself may not be enough

Is Being Connected Enough? 5 seconds to download using broadband connection 2 hours to download using University of Maryland dial-up server (similar to AOL, Erols, etc.) Only 10.7% of households have broadband today

International Divide Developing countries lack infrastructure required for widespread internet access Still lacking more basic necessities Low literacy rates

Debate Some scholars argue that once developing countries get access, further progress in areas like health care and education will be cheap and fast. Others say divide can only widen in a world in which most of these countries are so far from getting infrastructure and equipment

Sub-Saharan Africa Faces problems of famine and drought Often have unresponsive governments Very few telephone lines Even postal service highly unreliable But one Internet booth could be shared by many people

Example: Chad In 1996, Chad had: –One phone line per 1000 people –3-year wait for a phone line –3 computers per 1000 people Compare to the US: –640 lines per 1000 people –No wait for a phone line –362 computers per 1000 people

India Recent influx of high-tech investment from US. Has large population of educated, literate people (though not as a percentage). Widespread use of public “Net-Cafes”

Common Problems Financial resources Linguistic divide Restrictive or unresponsive governments

Technological barriers and possible solution assessment

What are the barriers? Three significant types of limitations Hardware Software Infrastructure

Hardware What do we mean by hardware? Hardware in this context, refers to phones lines, computers, modems, routers, satellites, and any piece of equipment that may aid someone in increasing their technological capabilities.

What kind of hardware is needed to gain access to the Internet? 1.A computing system such as a pc or web TV 2.Device to transmit data over external line such Modem/ modem-router/ wireless card Is hardware really a major barrier?

Yes! In a study done by global Internet Trends, the access fee was not the main reason for staying offline. 16% of the population indicated that access fess were the reason that they were not online, while a striking 33% claimed that not owning a computer was the main reason.

Software issues Different Operating systems all communicating with each other Different language standards Security restrictions One of the biggest problems with bringing new computers online however is the IP reserve pool.

Internet protocol What is it? IP is the very means by which messages are able to be transported from one computer to another. It allows all computers on this giant network to “talk” and exchange information with each other Similar to a house address

What is wrong with the current IP system? Current system known as IPv4 uses 8 bytes or 32 bits to store addresses. This allows for a maximum of about 4 billion address (~2^32). This seems like a lot, but today everything is being connected to the net thus requiring a its own IP How can we work around this?

IPV6 Though there are many other temporary solutions, one of the most promising long term works is IPv6 Uses 6 bytes or 48 bits, thus allowing for over 281 quadrillion unique addresses (~2^48) Unfortunately there are extensive difficulties merging the two standards

Infrastructure Infrastructure is a major barrier to broadband access It forms a subdivide within the U.S. of access vs. high speed access

Broadband What is it? In this context, broadband is defined as DSL, cable, ISDN, satellite, or in general any connection at 128K/sec or greater transfer rate

Broadband difficulties Distance can from the data center is limited to 18,000 feet Rural areas previously had a difficult times getting access

Satellite Satellite has allowed access to high speed from remote locations It helps access globally as well as domestically because distance is irrelevant Satellite is only one solution and is not prefect.

Conclusion There will continue to be many challenges to overcoming the digital divide, both domestically and internationally. Barriers to access are many, and may be financial, technological, political, or linguistic. Though the digital divide in the United States appears to be shrinking, the international divide does not.