At the end of this year, there will be three billion users
on the Internet – approaching half the world's total population of around seven
billion – according to a report from the United Nations International
Telecommunications Union. And the ITU claims that two-thirds of these surfers
will be from the developing world.
The report produced a number of interesting global
statistics, including the fact that in the Americas, two-thirds of the
population will be online as 2015 rolls around, and 20 per cent of African
people. Europe, however, will have the highest figure with 75 per cent of citizens
online.
The ITU also crunched some mobile broadband figures, and the
number of mobile surfers will hit 2.3 billion worldwide at the end of the year
– with 55 per cent of these expected to come from emerging nations.
Mobile broadband is showing the fastest growth across the globe, with two-digit growth rates throughout the year, and Africa sitting at the top of the table with a 20 per cent growth rate for 2014 (compared to 2 per cent just four years ago). Fixed broadband, however, is slowing down in terms of growth in emerging nations – penetration should reach 10 per cent by the close of 2014.
Brahima Sanou, the Director of ITU's Telecommunication
Development Bureau, commented: "Behind these numbers and statistics are
real human stories. The stories of people whose lives have improved thanks to
ICTs. Our mission is to bring ICTs into the hands of ordinary people, wherever
they live. By measuring the information society, we can track progress, or
identify gaps, towards achieving socio-economic development for all."
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