February 7, 2008 11:20 AM
US Ranks First in Worldwide for Use of Info Tech
Last week a London business school professor released a new set of rankings aimed at gauging which countries are making the most out of using information technology to increase productivity, dubbed the Connectivity Scorecard.
Unlike the many studies that track America's falling broadband star to middle-of-the-pack mediocrity, in this area we can still proudly hold our heads high as we came out at the head of the class.
The study looked at 30 different factors related to the use of telecommunications technologies to boost social and economic prosperity. While the US did get demerits for its 20th century telecom infrastructure, the degree to which individuals and corporations utilize technology to spur productivity was able to overcome this limitation.
But despite our victory, we're a long ways away from being able to proclaim Mission Accomplished, as evidenced by the fact our score didn't top 7 on a 10 point scale, primarily because of the missed opportunities broadband provides.
Instead of seeing this as a chance to pat ourselves on the back for what we've done, I see this as an opportunity to serve as a rallying cry for how much more we can be doing.
Additionally, it highlights that despite our lagging connectivity we're still the country that's best poised to take advantage of the information technology revolution.
On the flipside, it shows that simply having connectivity is not enough as the much vaunted fiber networks of South Korea were only good enough to rank them at #10 on this list.
In other words, having technology is not as significant as using technology.
This is an important lesson to keep in mind moving forward as it's easy to get caught up in the hype around new last mile technologies or killer apps and lose sight of what really matters: improving society through the use of that technology.
Comments (1)
I think we have to temper our enthusiasm about the future, because we have a unique situation that allows the net neutrality issue to influence how users can use the technology. When Comcast can impose restrictions at will, the opportunity for users to participate, diminishes. Would you sign up with Comcast, if you had no other choice, knowing they will dictate what, when, and how you use the technology? I wouldn't.
Posted by Tom Poe on February 8, 2008 12:01 AM