“Broadband is an essential service for both individuals and business, and is vital for Australia’s future economic prosperity.”
- Sen. Helen Coonan,
Minister for Communications, Information Technology
and the Arts, MEDIA RELEASE, 2007
There is no hiding from the fact that in this technologically advanced era that the Australian community’s dependency on technologies is ever-increasing – included in this is the heavy reliance on the internet. This reliance is present in business relations, from marketing and accounting to resource purchasing and inter-office communication. Furthermore, on the home front, one’s holiday arrangements, personal shopping and/or communications all utilise a strong connection to the same technology.
It is largely due to government influence in the form of legislation and support for infrastructure development that we can access this networking technology, and it is the government (in conjunction with the telecommunications companies) that will further expand accessibility and availability of these services.
Australia is a member of the thirty countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The OECD rates how ‘wired’ developed countries are, with respect to such factors as GDP, and ranks them accordingly. At present, Australia is ranked 16th, with 19.2 broadband subscribers per 100 inhabitants, a total of 3 939 288 subscribers (OECD, 2006).
The OECD outlines some influencing factors regarding the country’s possible adoption of the internet; specifically these include the country’s economic position, as well as its economic equality, the nation’s education levels, the prominence of the English language (as it is the most prominent language used on the world wide web), the legalities associated with the country’s advocated free competition in the telecommunications sector and the nation’s pre-existing telecommunications facilities (Hargittai, 1999) – all factors which heavily resonate under government influence.
Source: OECD Broadband Subscribers per 100 inhabitants, by technology, Dec 2006.
In a 1997 study involving the analysis of 23 case studies, a number of benefits of internet use within Australian businesses were identified (Poon & Swatman, 1997). The authors concluded that the internet provided a cheap communication medium, creating avenues between customers and other businesses, namely suppliers, business partners and competitors, as well as providing the ability to effectively and efficiently transfer documents. Other key functions were found to be internet business development, advertising and/or marketing, business delivery avenues and increases in competitive market participation. However, it is notable that at time of publication of this paper (1997), there was obviously further potential for internet integration of business activities to improve business efficiency. However, one impediment to this development, according to Poon and Swatman (1997), was the then lack of programs to adapt such tasks, as well as the availability of a reliable network system.
The Government has rightly been a strong advocate of technological integration and the need for technological advancement. It should also be noted that the internet has been used to advantage by the Government in pursuing its own business and political goals. Utilising the non-mass media controlled text type allows the Government of the day (as well as non-government parties) to provide their political message to the electorate in a one sided view, and also for campaigning, networking, participation promotion and resource generation. In recent research a number of political parties utilising the technology noted the internet as “one of, if not the, most important communication tool at their disposal” (Gibson & Ward, 2002, p. 114).
With respect to internet use in the home, data collected by the Australian Bureau of Statistics indicated that between the collection periods of 2004-05 and 2005-06, the proportion of Australian households with access to the internet increased by 4 points to 60% (ABS, 2005-06). 65% of these Australian internet users cited their main purpose as for personal or private use, followed by work or business related purposes.
Unfortunately, equity of accessibility remains a constant issue, with statistics indicating that improved internet options are most notably seen in homes of higher income earners, those with higher education levels, and younger people aged between 15 and 24. Seemingly evident also is the 19% of those not using the internet due to the price of use being “too high” (ABS, 2006).
The above examples of Australian internet use and the associated publishing periods show the time period of action of the Australian Government. During the period between 1996 and 2005, the federal government spent $1 billion on schemes such as HiBiS (Higher Bandwidth Incentive Scheme) aiming to connect more Australians at competitive prices, programs to improve the communications infrastructure, an advanced networks program, and the encouragement of investment in broadband infrastructure and service delivery (Williams, 2004).
However, as technology grows, the need for improved internet access is in further demand, with the number of broadband users recently almost doubling in one year, from 28% of all household internet connections in 2004-05, to 48% recorded in 2005-06 (ABS, 2006). The Federal Government has since acted positively. In December 2006, the Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts (DCITA) released the ‘Broadband Blueprint’, outlining a “national frameworks for the future of broadband in Australia” (DCITA, 2006a). The blueprint highlighted the Government’s focus on Broadband infrastructure and future equity of accessibility to all Australians. The document outlined financial contributions – namely the $1.1 billion ‘Connect Australia’ scheme, which encompassed a variety of communications funding schemes, including ‘Broadband Connect’, an $878 million infrastructure plan, “boosting the reach, quality and capacity of broadband networks in regional, rural and remote areas” (DCITA, 2006b, p. 68).
According to Government, the health, education and research sectors are benefited by these technological advancements; able to consistently move with global improvements as well as improving the Australian quality of life (DCITA, 2006b). Some technological improvements in these sectors are as follows:
- Education: The $54 million collaborative effort by Australia and New Zealand 'Learning Federation’ Online curriculum, as well as the Australian Flexible Learning Framework, developing appropriate services and resources to meet the current technology driven learning environment.
- Health: The ‘Broadband for Health’ program, connecting all general practitioners, community pharmacies and Aboriginal community controlled health services nationwide; as well as the introduction of a nationwide electronic records system.
- Research: $500 million National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy, developing the research sector’s technological platforms to globally collect, share, analyse, store and retrieve information, advancing the Australian research industry’s credibility and development (DCITA, 2006b).
The impact of the internet and its associated capabilities can technologically benefit many aspects of Australian society – including the nation’s economy. Although it is incredibly difficult to establish the economic effect of the internet within Australia, the Australian digital content industry alone employs some 300 000 people across some 9 500 businesses, contributing $21 billion to the Australian economy (DCITA, 2006b).
In 2001 a US study was conducted of eight nominated industries and reported a speculative estimate of US$100-230 billion of financial savings for these industries where internet technologies had been integrated into business activities (Litan & Rivlin, 2001).
The high level of internet use – one might say our borderline dependency on it – is real and its growth inevitable. As the number of internet users increases there is also greater need for improved availability and quality of internet provision. The Federal Government has so far reacted reasonably well to changing trends so that the nation’s population can adopt new technologies as they require. Recent initiatives in this respect include the Australian broadband infrastructure schemes – which follow on from the completion of the ‘Broadband Connect’ program and the commencement of the $162.5 million ‘Australian Broadband Guarantee’ (DCITA, 2007).
Changing technologies indeed dominate many aspects of the Australian community’s lifestyle and open beneficial avenues in health, education and research sectors, as well as major economic improvements.
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References
Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 2006, Broadband Internet Access Doubles, Media Release. Viewed 3rd May 2007. Available Online: <
http://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/abs@.nsf/Latestproducts/8146.0Media%20Release32005-06?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=8146.0&issue=2005-06&num=&view=>
Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 2005-06, 8146.0 - Household Use of Information Technology, Australia, 2005-06, Viewed 3rd May 2007. Available online: <
http://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/abs@.nsf/0/acc2d18cc958bc7bca2568a9001393ae?OpenDocument>
Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts 2006a, Broadband Blueprint. Viewed 30th April 2007. Available online: <
http://www.dcita.gov.au/communications_for_consumers/internet/broadband_blueprint>
Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts 2006b, Broadband Blueprint – Broadband Development, Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra.
Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts 2007, Australian Broadband Guarantee, Viewed 30th April 2007. Available online: <
http://www.dcita.gov.au/communications_for_business/news_and_events/australian_broadband_guarantee>
Gibson, R. & Ward, S., 2002, ‘Virtual Campaigning: Australian Parties and the Internet’, Australian Journal of Political Science, Vol. 37, No.1, p. 99 – 129.
Hargittai, E, 1999. ‘Weaving the Western Web: Explaining the differences in Internet connectivity among OECD countries’, Telecommunications Policy, Vol. 23, Issue. 10/11, p. 701-718.
Litan, R.E & Rivlin, A.M., 2001. ‘Projecting the Economic Impact of the Internet’, American Economic Review, American Economic Association, Vol. 91, No. 2, p. 313-317.
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), 2006, OECD Broadband Statistics to December, 2006. Viewed 8th May, 2007. <
http://www.oecd.org/document/7/0,2340,en_2649_34223_38446855_1_1_1_1,00.html>
Office of the Minister for the Department of Communications, Information technology and the Arts 2007, $162.5 million for Australian Broadband Guarantee, Media Release. Viewed 30th April 2007. Available online: <
http://www.minister.dcita.gov.au/media/media_releases/$162.5_million_for_australian_broadband_guarantee>
Poon, S. & Swatman, P.M.C, 1997, ‘Small Business use of the Internet: Findings from Australian Case Studies’, International Marketing Review, Vol. 14, No. 5, p. 385-402.
