Digital Divide
23 February 2007
us: Smarter kids through television: debunking myths old and new Seattle Times
The digital divide used to separate rich from poor; now it separates parents from their children. Whether it's infants watching the new 24-hour "Baby's First TV" channel, or teenagers instant messaging while they watch last night's "Daily Show" on their iPods, television is an enormous presence in the lives of kids today. The average American child spends three to five hours a day watching it. And they start their viewing careers much earlier than ever before: In 1961, the average child began to watch television at age 3; today it is 9 months.
16 February 2007
Recycled PCs Bridge Digital Divide Business Week
For green disposal of electronic gear, companies may consider recycling computers in the developing world. Here Business Week looks at two nonprofits
15 February 2007
Old PCs help Africa's blind ZDNet
Refurbished PCs and clever use of USB keys are revolutionising the lives of visually impaired people in Kenya
14 February 2007
Eight nations set to get $150 laptops ZDNet
From Brazil to Pakistan, some of the world's poorest children will peer across the digital divide this month--reading electronic books, shooting digital video, creating music and chatting with classmates online.
09 February 2007
The true value of mobile phones to developing markets (sub req'd) McKinsey
An estimate of the economic benefits of wireless activity must include not only wireless operators but also auxiliary players and end users.
31 January 2007
Debate widens over over deploying computers in the developing world International Herald Tribune
At the World Economic Forum, the annual conclave of world leaders, concerns over a digital divide have taken a back seat to the challenge of climate change this year. Being out of the limelight, however, has not dimmed the debate over the best way to deploy computers in the developing world. The controversy boiled over on Saturday at a meeting where Craig Barrett, chairman of Intel, squared off with Nicholas Negroponte, the former director of the MIT Media Laboratory and head of the nonprofit organization One Laptop Per Child, which is focusing on the 1.2 billion children in the developing world.
30 January 2007
us: New bid to close ‘digital divide’ Examiner.com
San Francisco is on pace to offer a free wireless Internet network in two years but a faster and superior technology, a city-wide fibre network, may come on its heels that could better close the so-called digital divide.
The Digital Divide: Issues And Possible Solutions Master New Media blog
How can this phenomenon be reduced? In this article the author reviews the three aspects we must take in consideration when analyzing the digital divide, along with its possible solutions. These are the economy, usability and empowerment.
22 January 2007
CONFERENCE: eLearning Africa E-Learning Africa
This event focuses on ICT for development, education and training in Africa. It will establish a network of decision makers from governments and administrations with universities, schools, governmental and private training providers, industry, and important partners in development cooperation. This year's edition focuses on "Building Infrastructures and Capacities to Reach out to the Whole of Africa", reflecting the significant efforts of African countries to set up their national and regional ICT infrastructures to create access to education, training and services for all. The conference will be accompanied by an exhibition.
19 January 2007
Internet Extends Reach Of Bangladeshi Villagers Washington Post
The village doctor's diagnosis was dire: Marium needed immediate surgery to replace two heart valves. The 28-year-old mother of three said she was confused and terrified. She could barely imagine open-heart surgery. She had no idea how her family of farm laborers could pay for an operation that would cost US$4,000.
Motorola, Nokia expect payoff in bridging the digital divide USA Today
It feels perverse to meet amid the spectacle of 108-inch TV screens, automatic scalp massagers and cars with 20,000-watt stereos and talk about the digital divide. It's like ordering a seven-course spread at Spago and then discussing world hunger. But for at least two of the CEOs at this month's Consumer Electronics Show -- Ed Zander of Motorola and Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo of Nokia -- the billions of unconnected, undigitized, underserved people around the globe are often top of mind.
IT drives wedge between workers IT Week
A lack of user-friendly technology in the marketplace is exacerbating a digital divide in the workforce between those who can use technology effectively and those who can't and is likely to provoke a backlash among users, according to a new Technology Predictions for 2007 report from consultancy Deloitte.
us: Union Calls For Several New Internet Policies Information Week
The United States has fallen behind smaller and once less-advanced countries and risks falling further behind unless lawmakers work to improve Internet access for all, a new paper by the Communications Workers of America suggests. Schoolchildren, healthcare providers and media across the U.S. are on the have-nots' side of the digital divide, according to the union.
13 January 2007
Australia trials low-cost laptop for indigenous Australians Sydney Morning Herald
The One Laptop Per Child project aims to put low-cost laptops into the hands of impoverished children in the developing world, but work is already underway to trial them among indigenous populations in Australia.
31 December 2006
Comment: Is this digital democracy, or a new tyranny of cyberspace? The Guardian
The hype of freedom on the web masks both disparities of power and the dangers of blurring real and virtual identities
20 December 2006
Government Interoperability Frameworks for Asia-Pacific Countries Asia-Pacific Development Information Programme news release
IBM, Oracle, UNDP-APDIP and the International Open Source Network team up to help Asia-Pacific countries share and create strategies, blueprints and policies for adopting the right blend of open standards and technology services. The goal will be for more countries to develop universally compatible applications and networks to make internal and external government services and transactions more automatic, affordable and efficient.
12 December 2006
Out of Africa: A new kind of telecoms operator is evolving in Africa and the Middle East The Economist
That mobile phones are transforming economic and social life in Africa is now widely understood. Less well known are the companies that are leading the charge. Following a flurry of deals over the past 18 months, five African and Middle Eastern operators are now vying for supremacy. These regional powerhouses have worked out how to earn princely sums in the world's poorest places. So far they have mostly been too busy signing up new subscribers to compete vigorously with each other. But that is now starting to change, and the industry is preparing for a round of consolidation as the operators start to attack each other's markets.
20 November 2006
Asia's poor consider Web access options IT News
The growing power of mobile handsets is making it likely that the majority of people in Asia's poorer nations could bypass PCs altogether, and use mobile phones as their main means of Internet access.
07 November 2006
End of the digital divide? Will India and China’s growth in the online world impact the internet’s evolution? Financial Express
As the world debated the web's future at the IGF, one thing was clear -- countries like India and China will see the biggest online expansion. If the Asian users outnumber North American and European users by a wide margin, will we see a radically different internet in a few years?
01 November 2006
When in Rome... Will U.S. Laws count? Spamhaus case causes concerns. eWeek
Sometimes it can be hard coming up with ideas for a weekly opinion column. But there's one well that never seems to go dry (unfortunately). I can always rely on some court or politician making a shortsighted decision that has the potential to hurt the entire technology business and even the Internet itself.
27 October 2006
uk: Digital divide could be deepening BBC
The number of people in the UK who have no intention of getting internet access has risen, research firm Point Topic has found.
08 October 2006
OECD Information Technology Outlook 2006 OECD
Information technology and broadband are major drivers of economic change, restructuring businesses, affecting skills and employment, and contributing to growth and consumer benefits. This volume describes recent market dynamics and trends in industries supplying IT goods and services and offers an overview of the globalisation of the information and communication technology (ICT) sector and the rise of ICT-enabled international sourcing. The OECD Information Technology Outlook 2006 analyses the development and impact of the changing global distribution of services activities and the rise of China and India as significant suppliers of ICT-related goods and services. ICT skills across the economy are also examined to provide insights into the dynamics of job creation and international sourcing.
18 April 2006
Promoting Cybersecurity in Developing Countries International Telecommunication Union
"The case for promoting a global culture for cybersecurity was strongly emphasized at the World Telecommunication Development Conference (WTDC) during an information session for participants conducted by ITU.
