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Inequity

20 January, 2016 - 15:30

The hardware and software advances we have spoken of are only widely available in developed nations, and, even within those nations, there is substantial inequality. Information technology requires money and education, which are scarce in many parts of the world. The following map, showing values of the International Telecommunication Union Digital Opportunity Index for each nation, illustrates this “digital divide.” 1

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Figure 7.19 The digital divide 
 

Since telecommunication infrastructure is economically and socially important, nearly every nation has a telecommunication policy. Some nations, like China, Singapore, Korea, Japan, and Chile enact policies and make investments designed to provide ample capacity, others take a more laissez faire approach, counting on the efficacy of markets by encouraging privatization, independent regulation and competition. 2There is growing evidence that this laissez faire policy has reached its limits and is failing to generate the investment needed to keep up with forthcoming software and applications. 3 If that is the case, we need policy innovation as well as technical progress.