An activist group in the UK is calling for broadband Internet access to be made a legal right. The group wants the government to ensure that every home in the country has access to at least a 2 mbps connection. They are not asking the government to provide or pay for the connection, or require people to install it, but to ensure that homes have access to it.
The government currently has targets of 25 mbps connections for 90% of homes in the UK, but the campaign group fear that rural homes will be left with much slower access – some still use dialup connections.
The article raises a lot of potential impacts and issues related to equality of access. Widely differing levels of access to the Internet and other technologies in developing countries can sometimes be forgotten by ITGS students when considering the digital divide. This is understandable – it can be easy to concentrate on less developed countries and projects such as the OLPC. A topic such as this could also make a great ITGS classroom debate. Do you think Internet access should be a legal right? Would your answer differ depending on the country or region involved?
Source: PC Pro article
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