Participation Gap in the U.S.

In 2007, a study showed that only 65.1% of students used their own laptops. However, a more recent study by the PEW Research Center showed that 88% of adults now have cell phones. This shows that the digital divide is coming to an end in the U.S. However, the same does not go for the participation gap.

The dark red color represents areas who have the lowest digital divide. The United States is included in the small handful of countries that all under this category. 

Digital Divide Falling

"The international "digital divide" is closing at a steady fall." -United Nations Telecoms Agency

The study from 2007 showed that Blacks and Hispanics are the ones who mostly don't have Internet in their homes. While they don't have Internet in their homes, the PEW study showed that Blacks and Hispanics used the Internet from their mobile devices more than any other race. The 2007 study didn't take into consideration the use of mobile devices, which may have skewed the research towards making people believe there's a digital divide. In a few years, we can expect the digital divide to be basically gone. 

Participation Gap an Ongoing Issue

The PEW study showed that only 17% of cell phone owners use their mobile device as their prime source for online browsing. This proves that everyone uses different devices, whether it'd be a mobile device, a personal laptop computer, or a public computer, to browse online. Some people don't have access to different types of technology due to many reasons, therefore, the participation gap can never be completely closed. In a few years, the participation gap will still exist, but it will be dramatically smaller. 

Usage of Mobile Devices will Boom

In the near future, the majority of people will browse the Internet from some sort of mobile device. It could be a tablet, phone, or perhaps even something else that will be invented soon. The convenience of having a portable device that can do anything a computer can everywhere you go will cause this shift. With all of these technological advancements in the mobile world, using a mobile device as a primary source for internet browsing is seeming more and more practical. 

U.S. mobile technology is lagging behind other societies

The perception that the Untied States has the most advanced technology in the world is a lie. Compared to other countries, we are so far behind that it looks like we’ve just given up completely. While many Americans may be satisfied with the 2 GB data plan for $25 a month right now, this will likely change once they are informed of how much they’re over paying compared to other countries.

Japan broadband speeds almost 13 times stronger than the U.S.

The U.S. has embarrassingly low broadband speeds compared to other countries like Japan, Korea, and France. Why are our broadband speeds so slow when we have the greatest GDP in the world? Unlike other nations, our existing broadband providers aren’t mandated to share their networks with competitors causing slower speeds and unreliability. Another thing slowing us down is “the government not subsidizing the extension of broadband to rural areas and inner cities that need it but can’t afford to install the infrastructure.”

U.S. offers slower speeds with a bigger price tag

Going back to Japan, they offer broadband speeds at 63.6M bps at a relatively cheap rate of $.13 per megabit. The United States on the other hand offers 4.9M bps at around $2.83 per megabit. At this rate, if the United States had broadband speeds similar to Japan, the rate would be about $36.29 per megabit for broadband speeds. That’s $36.66 more than what Japan’s rate. 

U.S. doesn't fall in top 10 of biggest networks 

This table shows the largest networks worldwide based on the number of subscribers. As you can see, no United States networks are shown. The first United States network to be shown is Verizon Wireless, and it is only the 18th largest network.

U.S. policies slowing us down

While other countries have policies that promote competition and innovation, the United States has policies that promote a few carriers to dominate. "According to a study last year by Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet & Society, 94% of South Korean households had land-line broadband service, compared with half in the USA. The Korean cities of Busan and Seoul had the world's fastest download times, while no American city finished in the top 20. Koreans also enjoyed better mobile broadband service. And in the case of both land line and mobile, Koreans generally paid less than Americans." The reason is because South Korea has made broadband a national priority. The vast amount of competition keeps the price down and the quality of service high. It's basic economy! If an average American were asked to list broadband networks available to them, they would probably only be able to list a few (AT&T, Verizon, and T-mobile). That's because there are only so many they can list. If the United States were to have policies that promoted competition and innovation like South Korea and many other countries, we wouldn't be ranked so low. 

The United States is taking an enormous risk not doing anything about their lag behind other countries in mobile technologies. In such a technology driven world, doing so will make the United States much less competitive.