Internet and inequality
A World Bank report on the so-called digital dividend published on Wednesday has prompted widespread comment in the media that far from creating a more equal society, the internet is distorting wealth distribution in favor of a relatively small minority.
The report, which is worth reading, does indeed conclude that some sections of society, and the world overall, have benefitted more than others: there are still many entry barriers to the new opportunities in the labor market. Similarly, internet voting could increase participation, but only among those sections of a society with online access. In short, in many countries there is a digital gap between the haves and have-nots.
As with all revolutions, it is the best prepared who are able to take advantage, and these people tend to be the best-educated, who in turn tend to come from the wealthier groups in society. Not just anybody can start a company; not just anybody can afford to learn the skills needed to take advantage of the trickle down of technology.
There is something Darwinian about the internet: those who survive are not necessarily the strongest or the biggest, but those best able to adapt, and in our world that means those able to provide their children with early access to the internet and an education that allows them to take advantage of its opportunities. The benefits of economic growth and access to employment opportunities and services are not shared out equally, but on the basis of how quickly individuals, governments, and business adopt and make use of disruptive technology.
In the case of the internet, it could be argued that we have created unrealistic expectations that it was going to solve all the world’s problems, but we shouldn’t forget that there are two main variables at play here: being able to connect and wanting to do so. For years we have seen how governments, businesses, and individuals have effectively chosen not to take advantage of the internet, and this despite the continual lowering of entry barriers. But again, lowering entry barriers in themselves doesn’t mean that everybody in society is ready to take advantage of the internet.
None of this detracts from the fundamental importance of the internet in our lives and for the future. In short, there is nothing wrong to assess the impact of the internet over the last two decades, but the problems identified in the World Bank report are not the result of innovation in itself, but of the failure of governments and institutions to properly facilitate its widespread adoption.
The World Bank report provides a timely reminder of the need to look in detail at the attitudes that have prevented the internet from achieving, so far, its full potential to improve the lives of everybody. We need to look at what we have achieved by continuing to do things in the same old way, and what we can do to improve things.
(En español, aquí)
