Digital Divide and Rural Communities: Practical Solutions and Policies

During the last years the wide spread of WWW has led to a new form of illiteracy, a “digital” one. Only those who can afford the PC and fast Internet connection are able to take advantage of it. By most counts, the number of PC and Internet users is very small compared to the numbers that would use it if they could. As more individuals are connected online, those who are not connected are increasingly in danger for becoming more marginalized within society. World widely there is a rising concern over this “digital divide” (Brachos, Kostopoulos, Soderquist, 2003; Reddy, 2005; Schloman, 2004; OECD, 2001). The fact nowadays is that “The network society is creating parallel communications systems: one for those with income, education and literacy ABSTRACT

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