"The rapid spread of the internet and mobile phones around the globe has failed to deliver the expected boost to jobs and growth, the World Bank has revealed in a report that highlights a growing digital divide between rich and poor. The Bank said no other technology has reached more people in so short a time as the internet, but warned that the development potential of technological change had yet to be reaped. According to the Bank’s new “World Development Report 2016: Digital Dividends”, the number of people connected to the internet has more than tripled in the past decade, from 1 billion to an estimated 3.5 billion. In many developing countries, more families own a mobile phone than have access to electricity or clean water. But the report said the benefits of rapid digital expansion had been skewed towards the better-off and the more highly skilled, who were better able to take advantage of the new technologies. By comparison, 4 billion people – or 60% of the world’s population – had no access to the internet."
Issues and developments related to ethics, information, and technologies. My Bloomsbury book "Ethics, Information, and Technology" will be published in January 2026; Preorders are available via this webpage: https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/ethics-information-and-technology-9781440856662/
Tuesday, January 19, 2016
Spread of internet has not conquered 'digital divide' between rich and poor – report; Guardian, 1/13/16
Larry Elliott, Guardian; Spread of internet has not conquered 'digital divide' between rich and poor – report:
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.