Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
Fig. 2.7
Distribution of new internet users, 2000-2011. Source internetworldstats.com
unprecedented extent, large pools of the economically disenfranchised are shut off
from cyberspace. As the internet erodes the monopolistic roles once played by the
telephone and television, and as the upgrading of required skill levels steadily
render information technology skills necessary even for lower wage service jobs,
lack of access to cyberspace becomes increasingly detrimental to social mobility.
Indeed, those excluded from the internet may be more vulnerable to social forces
they do not and often cannot perceive than ever before.
Because personal computer ownership rates are relatively low in much of the
developing world, and because Internet Service Provider (ISP) individual access
charges are often high, many users rely upon privately-owned internet cafés for
access rather than individual ISP accounts. Cafés are particularly important for
those who lack dial-up access at home or at work or who simply cannot afford
personal computers of their own. In the developing world, internet cafes tend to be
most commonly found in commercial districts frequented by tourists, exhibit a
range of ownership structures from sole proprietorships to international chains, and
charge access prices that vary widely among and within countries. In addition to
for-profit cybercafés, many non-profit and non-governmental organizations have
established networks of neighborhood telecenters, which have played catalytic
roles in community development in many areas.
In addition to international discrepancies in access, internet usage also reflects
the power-geometries within countries (Massey
2005
) through which the poor,
elderly, ethnic minorities, and rural areas enjoy markedly less access (Chakraborty
and Bosman
2005
; Mills and Whitacre
2003
). Unfortunately, relatively little is
known about this issue, in large part due to lack of data on the topic. However, the
enormous growth rates of the internet mean that digital divides are rapidly
changing, and as access improves for many hitherto marginalized groups, may
slowly decline over time.
The latest frontier in the digital divide is unquestionably the arena of broadband
delivery services, which varies widely in availability among the world's countries
(Fig.
2.8
). Broadband applications include digital television, business-to-business
linkages,
internet
gaming,
telemedicine,
videoconferencing,
and
internet
