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The purpose of this paper is to review recent government policy to provide a context for an exploratory study of broadband take up and use by small‐ and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) in the Thames Valley region of the UK. In recent years, the business environment has been fundamentally altered by the information and communication revolution that has changed the way in which businesses are created, operated and managed. However, the take up of broadband amongst SMEs remains low. Recent government policy has focussed on stimulating both supply and demand sides of the market for broadband technology as an entry point for SMEs.

The paper discusses the impact of government policy upon the use of broadband by SMEs and considers how occupiers are using and benefiting from the use of broadband.

The research undertaken indicates that government policy promoting broadband take up amongst SMEs has been effective in terms of the achievement of targets. The majority of SMEs in the case study are now equipped with broadband. However, their use of broadband appears to be limited to the more rudimentary uses for communication and searching for information as opposed to advanced applications such as e‐business and marketing.

Current government policy is aimed at promoting ICT for SMEs, but their effectiveness and success is yet to be measured. There is a need for more research in respect of the impact of broadband upon the working practices of SMEs, their business performance and relative competitiveness.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the widely‐held assumption that broadband infrastructure will bring social and economic benefits.

The paper examines the impacts of broadband in Korea, a country with the highest penetration rate of broadband. The current status of broadband in Korea is examined, followed by an assessment of its impact on electronic commerce, overall economic effects and new business opportunities.

There is evidence of positive impacts of broadband development in Korea. Most importantly, broadband internet not only provides a driving force for new businesses for related industries, but also forms a springboard for future infrastructure in the network economy.

The paper focuses on positive impacts, which are largely anecdotal, and does not seek to assess negative impacts.

There has been little research into the socio‐economic benefits of broadband. In addition, the paper provides a snapshot of development in South Korea.

The purpose of this study is to use the structural model to determine the influence of mobile telecommunication on Egypt’s economic growth from 2000 to 2009. By focusing on mobile unique subscribers and mobile broadband-capable device penetration as indicators of telecommunications adoption, the authors seek to understand their overarching effects on the nation’s economic landscape.

The paper uses quarterly time-series data set over the period 2000–2019 and uses a structural econometric model based on an aggregate production function, a demand function, a supply function and an infrastructure function to detect causality and examine long-run relationships between variables.

The findings of the structural model reveal that both mobile unique subscribers and mobile broadband-capable device penetration significantly contributed to Egypt’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth from 2000 to 2019. Specifically, a 1% increase in mobile unique subscriber penetration and mobile broadband-capable device adoption is estimated to result in an average annual contribution to GDP growth of 0.172% and 0.016%, respectively.

The scarcity of panel data is the main research limitation for comparative study with other Middle East and North African Region (MENA) countries. Research extensions would include testing the significance of complementarities such as improving governance measures and building human capacity for both households and firms, which are necessary to boost the impact of telecommunication on economic growth in the MENA region.

Based on these findings, the study puts forth policy recommendations aimed at maximizing investment in network utilization, including mobile and internet services, as well as fixed broadband subscriptions. It highlights the crucial role of these investments in promoting social and economic development, not only in Egypt but also across the MENA region as a whole.

The findings of this research emphasize the importance of strategic investments in network utilization, encompassing mobile, internet services and fixed broadband subscriptions. Such investments are pivotal for fostering social and financial inclusion. The study underscores the potential of these investments to drive social and economic progress, not just within Egypt but throughout the entire MENA region.

Overall, existing literature generally supports the notion that the telecommunications sector has a positive economic impact. However, there is a gap in the literature when it comes to understanding the specific effects of the Egyptian telecommunications sector on the country’s economy, particularly in relation to the Egypt Vision 2030. The study aims to fill this gap by focusing specifically on Egypt and providing additional insights into the direct and indirect effects of the Egyptian telecommunications sector on the economy. By conducting a thorough analysis of the sector’s role, the authors aim to contribute to the existing literature by providing context-specific findings and recommendations.

Access to high-speed Internet is essential for full and consequential participation in the civic, economic, and education systems of modern life. Yet 30% of Californians continue to lack “meaningful Internet access” at home. This digital divide is worse among already disadvantaged communities and prevents rural, lower-income, and disabled individuals from fully participating in the civic, economic, and education systems of life in 2018. This chapter establishes the magnitude of the digital divide, examines the factors that contribute to the Divide, and looks at which groups are most affected. Successful government programs that invested in utility infrastructure and adoption, such as the Rural Electrification Act, the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act and the California Advanced Services Fund, are examined to provide a foundation for broadband specific policy recommendations. The chapter sets up a framework for policy recommendations by segmenting the population based upon the concepts of material and motivational access and establishing meaningful Internet access as the goal for policy-makers. The chapter puts forth a number of specific policy recommendations to address the technological disparity and prevent it from furthering the economic and educational divides.

The COVID-19 pandemic provides an opportunity to review net neutrality and the notion that bright light rules are necessary to hold broadband providers from exercising market power. The 2015 Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Open Internet Order asserted that broadband providers have the capability and incentive to harm their customers and third-party service providers. It imposed a set of rules to control broadband providers’ offers, prices, and traffic management. The 2017 FCC vacated all but the transparency provisions of the OIO, restoring the oversight of broadband to the FTC.

This paper offers a review of the evidence regarding the effects of net neutrality regulation, including an investigation of the incidence of violations, or lack thereof, during the 2020 pandemic in the United States. It provides a review of the net neutrality literature and the international research on broadband provider behaviour during COVID-19. The paper presents original research conducted with FCC and FTC reports and a survey of news stories. Brief reviews of federal data on network performance and broadband adoption provide additional context. Given the limited incidence of violations that could be uncovered for the period, the paper suggests why broadband providers behaved opposite to regulatory advocates’ predictions. Contrary to many policy assertions, broadband providers did not block or throttle service, nor did they increase prices arbitrarily or decrease quality. Broadband providers appeared to expand availability, lower broadband prices, and make more networks available, frequently without customer charge. The paper suggests how policy could be updated to reflect the actual behaviour of broadband providers.

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which academic researchers consider the relationship between broadband access and children’s information seeking in the United States. Because broadband has been cited as an essential element of contemporary learning, this study sought to identify gaps in the attention given to the role of broadband in the information seeking environment of youth.

The researchers conducted a mixed method synthesis of academic research published in peer-reviewed journals between 1991 and 2011 that reported the information seeking of children aged 5–18 years. Quantitative and qualitative data were gathered from leading databases, analyzed separately, and conclusions drawn from integrated results.

The results of this study indicated that broadband is rarely considered in the design of children’s information seeking published in peer-reviewed research journals. Only 15 studies showed any presence of broadband in study design or conclusions. Due to the small number of qualifying studies, the researchers could not conduct the synthesis; instead, the researchers conducted a quantitative relationship analysis and qualitative content analysis.

Given the focus of policymaking and public discussion on broadband, its absence as a study consideration suggests a crucial gap for scholarly researchers to address.

The data set included only studies of children in the United States, therefore, findings may not be universally applicable.

Despite national imperatives for ubiquitous broadband and a tradition of information seeking research in library and information science (LIS) and other disciplines, a lack of academic research about how broadband affects children’s information seeking persists.

To examine broadband competition and broadband penetration in a set of countries that employ the same regulation framework. To define the policy and strategy required to promote broadband in weak markets that do not employ alternative infrastructures.

Study penetration and competition level statistics from 2002 to 2005 in a set of countries with different infrastructures deployed, services provided as well as in their social‐economic structures but employing the same regulation framework. Measure the level of inter‐platform and intra‐platform competition as well as the availability of bitstream access versus the incumbents' shares.

The paper concludes that a mature broadband market is the one that exhibits a high penetration ratio in combination with a high competition level. Bitstream access can counterbalance the inexistence of alternative broadband infrastructures, especially in weak markets. In particular the availability of numerous bitstream access types in combination with the proper price differentiation can fuel broadband adoption in relatively weak broadband markets.

The paper challenges the general rule that only platform (also known as facility) based competition guarantees long‐term growth of the broadband market. Bitstream and resale access do not lag local loop unbundling and can be used in weak markets that do not employ alternative infrastructures to fuel competition in the relevant markets. Different policies and strategies must be followed, in that case, on behalf of the local NRA.

The aim of this paper is to look at the extent to which the bandwagon effect played a part in digital subscriber line (DSL) broadband adoption combined with the regulatory measures, the slowdown in the cable industry and the changes within the telecommunications industry in the United Kingdom (UK). The dynamics of broadband deployment, broadband adoption against a real‐world supply‐demand equation and the factors that influenced the outcome in the UK are examined in detail.

This paper combines historic facts and socio‐economic analysis done from archival research and interview material to examine the outcome in which the less‐heralded copper DSL technology outpaced cable broadband adoption. The analysis delves into the influence of the bandwagon effect and the two types of outcome associated with it i.e. network externalities and the complementary bandwagon effects.

The paper argues that the deployment of broadband technologies in the UK has not taken place solely on the merits of the technology or factors such as speed, end‐user demand and costs. A combination of factors related to regulatory decisions, status of industry finances, commercial expediency, short‐term technical benefits and the bandwagon effect are argued to be at work.

The paper is useful for historians, policy makers, regulators and communications industry analysts given its focus on broadband deployment in the UK in correlation to the bandwagon economics.

This study aims to analyse how the media plays its role in the information communications technology (ICT) debate in a developing country context, by way of analysing the media discourse surrounding the South African Broadband Policy.

The study adopts a critical approach and uses critical discourse analysis, employing Habermas's theory of communicative action. Data for the study include the media reports on the South African Broadband Policy.

It is noted that: the media discourse was systematically distorted; the discourse was driven mainly by the government; and many actors were systematically excluded from the discourse, or opted not to engage in the debate. The low‐income category, the very group that should benefit from the policy, was excluded from the debate. The study notes further that the status of key actors in the policy affected the media's perception of the policy.

To increase the chances of success for policy, there is a need to include all stakeholders in the policy debate. This study notes how some actors were left out, and how others opted not to engage in the debate, which points to the need for strategies to promote participation in policy debate. It is noted, too, that the distortions could have resulted from lack of skills in the media, the enhancement of which could address the problem.