Middleton_Catherine_A.pdf (692.61 kB)
Understanding the Benefits of Broadband: Insights for a Broadband Enabled Ontario
online resource
posted on 2021-05-21, 16:18 authored by Catherine A. MiddletonThis paper reviews the international literature on broadband network developments and
assesses the claims of social and economic benefits attributed to broadband initiatives. The paper
reveals a current disconnect between societal level goals for increased citizen participation in the
knowledge economy, and individual broadband usage that is centred around communication and
entertainment activities. The paper points to the crucial, and often overlooked role that
communal level broadband initiatives can play in extending services to citizens, and in
improving interactions between governments and their constituents. It is noted that the clearest
beneficiary of global broadband deployments is the commercial sector. Although broadband
technologies are being widely adopted by consumers, and heavily promoted by governments, it
is observed that their impacts to date are subtle, rather than spectacular. It is difficult to identify a
set of applications or services that would be essential to a broadband enabled Ontario, but given
the perceived importance of broadband as an enabler of competitiveness and productivity, it
appears that an agenda to increase broadband capacity and services in Ontario is a reasonable
one. The paper concludes by presenting a number of issues to be considered in the development
of a strategic vision and agenda for ‘broadband enabling’ the Ontario economy.