Thursday, February 10, 2005

Digital Divides around the world

I guess, to answer Melanie's question, the biggest assumption that changed for me after this reading was that the "World Wide Web" wasn't actually being used as much in other countries. One of the most interesting facts from "Digital Divide" for me was that the U.S. contains an estimated 3/4 of all e-commerce sites worldwide, 79% of the world's internet hosts, 59% of the world's electronic mailboxes, and 54% of online buyers. We do only count as 39% of the world's internet users, but that is still a significant amount. It sounds like the worlds most affluent country has the most influence on the information highway.
I thought that one of the big perks of the internet was that we were going to communicate easier with people all around the world. But it sounds like its just us and the Netherlands that are interested in it. I do realize that the internet is relatively new (about 10 years old, right?), and as a more economically sound country we get in on the new technology a little quicker than some other countries. I guess my question is, do you think that in the next ten years there will be a significant or drastic change in the amount of internet users from foreign countries?

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