Beyond Broadband Access
Beyond Broadband Access
What Do We Need to Measure and How Do We Measure It?
This chapter considers what needs to be measured when it comes to Internet and broadband access and how to measure it. Around the world, claims that broadband infrastructure is central to the development of the knowledge economy are becoming indisputable. However, a gap exists between the discourses linking broadband deployment with the development of a knowledge-based society and the ability to deliver the desired outcomes. The chapter assesses existing information society measures like the International Telecommunication Union's ICT Development Index and the World Economic Forum's Networked Readiness Index, suggesting that while they provide a useful starting point for comparing national information and communications technology (ICT) indicators, they fail to offer sufficiently detailed metrics upon which to formulate policy related to the development and use of broadband networks. It proposes more nuanced approaches to understanding whether, and how, citizens actually benefit from access to broadband technologies, and offers suggestions for the development of new, policy-relevant metrics of ICT usage.
Keywords: broadband access, Internet access, knowledge economy, information society, information and communications technology, metrics, broadband networks, broadband technologies, ICT Development Index, Networked Readiness Index
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