Slashdot Mirror
About 40% of World Population Online, 90% of Offliners In Developing Countries
New submitter lx76 writes:
The International Telecommunications Union does research on telecommunications in society worldwide, from cellphones to internet use. Since 2009, on a yearly basis, they've released their research findings in a report called the Measuring Information Society Report. This year's report is over 200 pages long, illustrated with abundant graphs and tables (PDF). It's not a light read. But one of the interesting numbers is an index showing the divide in global connectivity. From the report: "Over the past year, the world witnessed continued growth in the uptake of ICT [Information and
Communication Technology] and, by end 2014, almost 3 billion people will be using the Internet, up from 2.7 billion at end 2013..... Despite this encouraging progress, there are important digital divides that need to be addressed: 4.3 billion people are still not online, and 90 per cent of them live in the developing world."
The report continues, "As this report finds, ICT performance is better in countries with higher shares of the population living in urban areas, where access to ICT infrastructure, usage and skills is more favorable. Yet it is precisely in poor and rural areas where ICTs can make a particularly significant impact." Projects like Google's Project Loon have their work cut out for them."
The report continues, "As this report finds, ICT performance is better in countries with higher shares of the population living in urban areas, where access to ICT infrastructure, usage and skills is more favorable. Yet it is precisely in poor and rural areas where ICTs can make a particularly significant impact." Projects like Google's Project Loon have their work cut out for them."
Do they actually mean developing like "less developed than west Europe, but catching up" or is it just polite euphemism for third-world shitholes that are actually worse than in colonial times?
There are a lot of people in developing countries without safe drinking water, access to medical care, adequate nutrition and many other serious problems. While it is sometimes difficult for the lucky few in better off countries to understand, they might just be a few things that are more important then having Internet access.
Food, clean water, sanitation, plumbing, medicine, education, reliable electricity, and then internet connectivity.
Exactly, the problem is infrastructure. If have that [the basics of survival that you mention] then the internet porn and facebook feeds will follow.
Maybe this is a good thing? Even though I thoroughly enjoy participating in a widely connected world, I do question the wisdom of making being connected a requirement for survival.
Time is what keeps everything from happening all at once.
where the AT&T, Verizon, Comcast, ... warlords are protecting their turf and blocking access by rural Americans?
The numbers are actually adjusted for spammers because 90% of the email addresses and blog commenters are spammers, are spammers, are spammers, are spammers...*whack*...
Considering that 30%~ of the world are subsistence farmers, and 40~%+ are involved in farming I am not surprised. I highly doubt that Sub-Saharan Africa should be worrying about the myth of the digital divide for most of the people there. Or the people that don't use money in central America. I mean 50% of the world eats with their hands. 1st world People have weird priorities sometimes. I hope this group isn't getting any donated money.
Mobile phones are booming in the developing world, and most are capable of SMS, e-mail, mobile cash, and downloading electronic books, if not also web browsing. More people now have access to cell phones than toilets.
http://time.com/74584/unesco-s...
.
Prisencolinensinainciusol. Ol Rait!
that she's in "the 10%"
It should come as no surprise that the vast majority of so-called "offliners" are underrepresented, disadvantaged, underprivileged minorities.
I read this and immediatly thought of my family. We're in rural Thailand. I gave my son an Android tablet and I provide a wifi Internet connection: he watches cartoons all the time. My wife plays with the tablet sometimes. But neither of them have an e-mail address or any social networking presence. And, frankly, I see no reason why they should. When my wife wants to socially network, she steps outside and talks to the neighbors. When my son wants to network, he goes to school. No Facebook, no Google+, who cares?
Most of the world lives happily without the Internet.
60% of word population is happy and free from surveillance.
ass shit. Fuck
runs his potty mouth
Potty mouth?
Three slang words in a row referring to sexual contact, excretion of body waste, or body parts primarily associated therewith sounds "potty mouth" to me.
pretends that using profanity is somehow wrong
An occasional swear is a valuable rhetorical tool. But overuse of "potty mouth" words distracts from the point of the post and makes the speaker sound so uneducated that he can't express a point without bringing up sex or excretion.
China would like to speak to you about paper [etc.]
Granted. And the Middle East has given us phonemic writing (rebus hieroglyphs), alphabetic writing (starting with the Phoenicians), place value numerals, and algebra. Thus we recognize Europe, the Middle East, and the Far East as sources of science and technology. But what comparable contribution has come out of Africa south of the Sahara?