Digital divide in Canada
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The digital divide in Canada refers to the discrepancy that exists between Canadians who have access to
information and communication technologies Information and communications technology (ICT) is an extensional term for information technology (IT) that stresses the role of unified communications and the integration of telecommunications (telephone lines and wireless signals) and computers, ...
(ICT) and the benefits they provide compared to those who do not. This divide can be the result of many factors, including high costs for technology and online access, differences in the availability of online connectivity resources in different locations across the country, and lacking
digital literacy Digital literacy refers to an individual's ability to find, evaluate, and communicate information through typing and other media on various digital platforms. It is evaluated by an individual's grammar, composition, typing skills and ability to pro ...
. The digital divide in
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
also stems from
income inequality There are wide varieties of economic inequality, most notably income inequality measured using the distribution of income (the amount of money people are paid) and wealth inequality measured using the distribution of wealth (the amount of we ...
among Canadians and differences in online practices exhibited by those of different age, gender, first language, and cultural background. The digital divide is greatest in Northern Canada due to the economic and geographical obstacles to setting up high speed internet connections between distant and sparsely populated towns, along with some residents' low digital literacy rates and lack of access to technology. Various government initiatives are currently being implemented to reduce the digital divide in Canada, including plans aimed at providing all Canadians with affordable high speed internet packages, increasing the amount of free public
Wi-Fi Wi-Fi () is a family of wireless network protocols, based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by radio wave ...
available, and the improvement of digital literacy among students in public elementary and high schools. There is no consensus on the appropriateness of government intervention in addressing the perceived digital divide.


Connectivity gap

While 99% of Canadians have access to wireline telephone service, many gaps still exist between the level of ICT access and internet connectivity that different groups within Canada possess. As of 2015 there are over 13 million fixed broadband subscriptions in Canada, which translates into approximately thirty six subscriptions per one hundred Canadian citizens. In the past the regulation of telephone and television monopolies in Canada by the
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC; french: Conseil de la radiodiffusion et des télécommunications canadiennes, links=) is a public organization in Canada with mandate as a regulatory agency for broadcasti ...
(CRTC) led to the creation of expansive
telecommunication Telecommunication is the transmission of information by various types of technologies over wire, radio, optical, or other electromagnetic systems. It has its origin in the desire of humans for communication over a distance greater than that fe ...
s networks and made connecting to them by customers affordable. Broadband's current lack of regulation at the retail level has led to a different market environment emerging for high speed internet access where
internet service provider An Internet service provider (ISP) is an organization that provides services for accessing, using, or participating in the Internet. ISPs can be organized in various forms, such as commercial, community-owned, non-profit, or otherwise private ...
s (ISP) have great control over what prices they charge and what infrastructure they build.


Income and price

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; french: Statistique Canada), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and cultur ...
states that income disparity plays a role in determining whether or not Canadians are connected online. Findings show that 97.7% of households that reside within the highest income
quartile In statistics, a quartile is a type of quantile which divides the number of data points into four parts, or ''quarters'', of more-or-less equal size. The data must be ordered from smallest to largest to compute quartiles; as such, quartiles are a ...
have high speed internet access, while only 58% of households that reside within the lowest income quartile possess access to the internet at home. A report conducted by Acorn Canada of low and moderate income Canadian families found that 83.5% of respondents believe the monthly cost of high speed internet service in Canada is very expensive. The
Canadian Internet Registration Authority The Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA) (french: Autorité canadienne pour les enregistrements Internet ACEI) is the organization that manages the .ca country code top-level domain (ccTLD) for Canada. Its offices are located at 979 ...
reports that in 2015 Canadians paid an average of $38.91 per month for high speed internet service, or an average of $203.04 monthly for all communication services combined. Acorn Canada is currently calling on the CRTC to mandate ISPs to provide a $10 per month high speed internet package in an effort to ensure that at least some form of online access is affordable for all Canadians. A lack of competition plays a large role in the prices that ISPs charge Canadians for online access. Unlike other countries which allow foreign competition to enter their national markets and keep prices competitive, regulation has forbidden the same from happening within Canada, resulting in fewer online connectivity choices for Canadians and the ability for
incumbent The incumbent is the current holder of an official, office or position, usually in relation to an election. In an election for president, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the office of president before the election, whether seek ...
ISPs to have a large amount of control over the prices they charge. To compensate for this, the CRTC has allowed for new entrant carriers to enter the broadband market in an attempt to keep prices competitive and increase consumer options regarding where internet access can be purchased from. New entrant carriers such as TekSavvy have been mandated access to incumbent carrier networks, such as those belonging to
Rogers Rogers may refer to: Places Canada *Rogers Pass (British Columbia) *Rogers Island (Nunavut) United States * Rogers, Arkansas, a city * Rogers, alternate name of Muroc, California, a former settlement * Rogers, Indiana, an unincorporated community ...
and
Bell A bell is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be made by an inter ...
, giving carriers which do not have the capital or resources available to build their own networks an opportunity to compete in the market. Broadband packages offered by new entrant ISPs are generally less expensive than those offered by incumbent ISPs, with many new entrant plans being between 20% to 30% cheaper compared to incumbent plans with similar speeds. Many plans offered by new entrant carriers also feature higher data caps, periods during the day when online usage does not contribute to a user's monthly data cap, or in some cases no monthly data cap at all. Despite efforts by the CRTC to increase competition without allowing the presence of international competitors, Canadian broadband prices have been steadily rising, with the average cost of high speed internet packages rising at three times the rate of inflation since 2010. As online access continues to become more essential to life in Canada, the
price elasticity A good's price elasticity of demand (E_d, PED) is a measure of how sensitive the quantity demanded is to its price. When the price rises, quantity demanded falls for almost any good, but it falls more for some than for others. The price elastici ...
of broadband service has been decreasing, allowing for disproportionate increases in price without the need for incumbent ISPs to fear a significant loss of customers as a result. Fixed broadband service is not the only area which has seen disproportionate increases in prices, as according to the
International Telecommunication Union The International Telecommunication Union is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for many matters related to information and communication technologies. It was established on 17 May 1865 as the International Telegraph Unio ...
Canada's mobile sector had the highest
average revenue per user Average revenue per user (ARPU), sometimes known as average revenue per unit, is a measure used primarily by consumer communications, digital media, and networking companies, defined as the total revenue divided by the number of subscribers. The t ...
in 2010 compared to the mobile markets of all other countries. As of 2015 mobile packages in Canada have an average price of approximately $60 per month with the possibility existing for usage and overage fees if calling, text messaging, or data limits are exceeded. Similar to new entrant carriers in the provision of fixed broadband service,
mobile virtual network operator A mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) is a wireless communications services provider that does not own the wireless network infrastructure over which it provides services to its customers. An MVNO enters into a business agreement with a mobil ...
s (MVNO) also exist which use incumbent infrastructure to provide mobile services in an attempt to make the market more competitive.


Data caps

Many high speed internet packages offered in Canada have data caps, or online data consumption limits that when surpassed will result in additional charges being applied to a user's monthly bill. Data caps in Canada can be as low as 20GB, which is over six times lower than the lowest data cap in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
of 150GB. Data caps contribute to the digital divide by discouraging online usage in users due to the fear of incurring overage charges for any bandwidth consumed once one's data cap has been exceeded. This results in further difficulties for low income families and minority groups regarding being able to afford and make significant use of high speed internet access at home. Plans offered by new entrant ISPs frequently have higher data caps than those offered by incumbent ISPs, with some new entrant plans offering unlimited
bandwidth Bandwidth commonly refers to: * Bandwidth (signal processing) or ''analog bandwidth'', ''frequency bandwidth'', or ''radio bandwidth'', a measure of the width of a frequency range * Bandwidth (computing), the rate of data transfer, bit rate or thr ...
during times of the day when overall network use is lower. Some plans offered by new entrant carriers also feature no data cap at all, which is something not frequently offered in retail plans provided by incumbent ISPs.


Location

While
urban Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of people ...
areas within Canada have a 100% high speed internet availability rate,
rural In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are describ ...
areas have a lower level of access to high speed internet service with a rate of only 87%. Many locations which do not have access to high speed broadband networks reside within the
Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...
,
Yukon Yukon (; ; formerly called Yukon Territory and also referred to as the Yukon) is the smallest and westernmost of Canada's three territories. It also is the second-least populated province or territory in Canada, with a population of 43,964 as ...
, and
Iqaluit Iqaluit ( ; , ; ) is the capital of the Canadian territory of Nunavut, its largest community, and its only city. It was known as Frobisher Bay from 1942 to 1987, after the large bay on the coast on which the city is situated. In 1987, its t ...
where various
geographical feature A feature (also called an object or entity), in the context of geography and geographic information science, is a discrete phenomenon that exists at a location in the space and scale of relevance to geography; that is, at or near the surface of E ...
s create difficulties relating to the development of broadband infrastructure. These development difficulties are compounded by the fact that there exists little incentive for ISPs to build broadband infrastructure in the north due to the high cost and low return of developing in areas where towns and people are greatly dispersed. Differences can also be found in the quality of networks that Canadians who live in different areas of the country have access to. Those living in urban areas, particularly residents of newly constructed or renovated condominiums, are more likely to have access to
fiber to the premises Fiber to the ''x'' (FTTX; also spelled "fibre") or fiber in the loop is a generic term for any broadband network architecture using optical fiber to provide all or part of the local loop used for last mile telecommunications. As fiber optic ...
(FTTP) internet connectivity than those in older neighbourhoods, who commonly still connect to the internet through infrastructure that is based at least partially on legacy
telephone A telephone is a telecommunications device that permits two or more users to conduct a conversation when they are too far apart to be easily heard directly. A telephone converts sound, typically and most efficiently the human voice, into e ...
or
cable Cable may refer to: Mechanical * Nautical cable, an assembly of three or more ropes woven against the weave of the ropes, rendering it virtually waterproof * Wire rope, a type of rope that consists of several strands of metal wire laid into a hel ...
technologies. As of 2015 Canada ranks 24th out of all countries in terms of FTTP penetration at a level of less than 5%. This lags behind other developed countries such as
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
and
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
which have national FTTP penetration levels of nearly 70%.


Demographics and the second level digital divide

Aside from monetary factors, demographic differences within Canada have also resulted in disparity regarding online connectivity and ICT use. Variables such as education and age can play a role in what is considered to be the second level digital divide, where even though a person may have access to high speed internet and the ICTs required to connect to it, their ability to make effective use of them is at a disadvantage compared to more educated or digitally literate groups. The digital divide in Canada is no longer just a question of those who have access to ICTs and those who don't, but rather bridging gaps pertaining to the second level digital divide is becoming increasingly important as resources including health care access, government documents, and businesses transition to an online space, meaning that digital literacy and technological understanding will be a key factor in the future for ensuring access to such things.


Education

The level of education attained by a Canadian citizen plays a role in determining how much one uses the internet. Canadians who have graduated high school are 67% more likely to connect online than those who have not graduated. Canadians who are currently attending school also have an almost five times higher online access rate compared to those without a high school diploma. Education levels not only determine how frequently Canadian citizens connect online, but also represent how engaged they are in various online activities. Canadians who have graduated high school perform more online activities than those without a high school diploma, and university graduates complete more online activities than those who have only graduated high school. In regards to social networking, current students utilize
social media Social media are interactive media technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. While challenges to the definition of ''social medi ...
services more frequently than those who are not currently in school, and Canadians with less than a high school diploma use social media more often than university graduates do.


Age

As of 2013 research has shown that 80% of Canadians who are sixteen years of age or older are connected to the internet and actively participate online. This number is up from 2007 when only 73% of Canadians who were sixteen years of age or older were engaging online. Approximately five million people within Canada are 65 years of age or older, and belong to an age group which shows some of the lowest levels of ICT usage and online engagement due to lacking access and digital literacy.
Ageism Ageism, also spelled agism, is discrimination against individuals or groups on the basis of their age. The term was coined in 1969 by Robert Neil Butler to describe discrimination against seniors, and patterned on sexism and racism. Butler defi ...
is also a contributing factor to this phenomenon, as many elderly Canadians feel disconnected from online issues and discourse amidst an online population which tends to be composed mostly of younger people. Accessibility issues are another contributing factor to the lack of older Canadians online, as barriers such as websites with smaller text can make it more difficult for some people to navigate the
World Wide Web The World Wide Web (WWW), commonly known as the Web, is an information system enabling documents and other web resources to be accessed over the Internet. Documents and downloadable media are made available to the network through web se ...
.


Gender

While the gap in Canada between men and women who have online access and own ICTs is shrinking to the point of almost non-existence, gaps still prevail regarding the quantity and type of use that exists between males and females. Canadian men make more use of the internet overall, performing more online activities and being generally more engaged compared to women. However, women are found to make greater use of social network media, with a 58% higher usage rate compared to men.


Language and culture

Canada's
multilingual Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all E ...
nature results in discrepancies between the use that Canadians of different first languages get out of online resources. This was a prominent factor of division during the earlier days of the internet, as there was far less motivation for
French Canadians French Canadians (referred to as Canadiens mainly before the twentieth century; french: Canadiens français, ; feminine form: , ), or Franco-Canadians (french: Franco-Canadiens), refers to either an ethnic group who trace their ancestry to Fren ...
to go online due to a lack of French websites and information available compared to English. As of the 2011
Canada Census Statistics Canada conducts a national census of population and census of agriculture every five years and releases the data with a two-year lag. The Census of Population provides demographic and statistical data that is used to plan public servic ...
, 57% of Canadians speak English as their first language, with 21% speaking French, and 20% speaking a language other than English or French as their first language. Immigration is another factor which must be considered when looking at the digital divide in Canada, as in some Canadian cities over half of the residents are foreign born. Immigrants who have resided in Canada for a fair length of time, as well as Canadian born immigrants have a 68% higher chance of using the internet compared to immigrants who have arrived in Canada recently. Plans are currently underway to connect
First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area. Indigenous groups *First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including: **First Natio ...
communities across Canada with high speed internet access. The
Government of Canada The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...
recently announced $2.2 million in funding to support the Pathways to Technology project in
British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
, which is focused on connecting "unserved or underserved" First Nations residents in the province with internet connectivity. In
Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...
$4.3 million in Federal funding has been given to the Manitoba First Nations Technology Council with the purpose of providing high speed internet to all 63 First Nations communities within the province, a project which will utilize 3,600 kilometers of
fiber optic cable A fiber-optic cable, also known as an optical-fiber cable, is an assembly similar to an electrical cable, but containing one or more optical fibers that are used to carry light. The optical fiber elements are typically individually coated with ...
.


Effects

Lacking access to ICTs, satisfactory broadband service, or digital literacy results in a less informed society and puts those who lack access at a disadvantage compared to others, as Canadians are more frequently looking to online sources for news, with social media platforms such as Facebook becoming an increasingly prominent way for people in Canada to consume information. Participation online is also important as it expands the social, cultural, and economic possibilities of those who are active on the internet, as services and resources are increasingly transitioning to online spaces, leaving those without online connectivity with a lack of access to them. Lacking online access and the knowledge or technology to make use of it also effects Canada's economy as a whole, preventing Canadians from the ability to purchase products or services from other Canadians who operate online businesses. Inadequate knowledge regarding technology is also a growing issue for Canadians as the world becomes more technology and online focused, making the need for digital literacy an increasingly important factor in education and labour, as computers open new opportunities for learning and training.


Solutions


Broadband as an essential service

Unlike telephone and television provision which are considered essential services within Canada, and are required under Canada's basic service objective to be available to all Canadians regardless of ability to pay for them, broadband internet access does not fall under the same guidelines. It has been proposed in recent years that broadband should be deemed an essential service along with telephone and television, and hearings are currently being held to discuss the feasibility of this idea. At the present time incumbent ISPs disagree with this proposition, claiming that the currently available internet connectivity services offered in all but some rural areas are sufficient to the point of not needing to be regulated by the CRTC.


Connecting Canadians

A program run by the Government of Canada known as Connecting Canadians is currently undergoing the task of improving Canada's online broadband network access to the point of providing all Canadians with a minimum quality of 5
megabit The megabit is a multiple of the unit bit for digital information. The prefix mega (symbol M) is defined in the International System of Units (SI) as a multiplier of 106 (1 million), and therefore :1 megabit = = = 1000 kilobits. The megabit h ...
s per second download speed and 1 megabit per second upload speed, target speeds seen by the CRTC as being fast enough to allow sufficient use of the Internet for carrying out essential tasks. This is to be achieved by providing subsidies to ISPs to upgrade and expand networks into rural areas, and aims to supply almost 300,000 households with high speed internet connections by 2019.


Public access

Locations such as public libraries where a person can connect to the internet for free without the need of owning ICTs or paying for internet access are one way of reducing the gap between those who can participate online and those who cannot. The city of
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
is currently partnering with
Google Google LLC () is an American multinational technology company focusing on search engine technology, online advertising, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, artificial intelligence, and consumer electronics. ...
in an effort to provide portable Wi-Fi hotspots for Canadians who would not otherwise be able to afford online connectivity. These hotspots can be taken to a user's home for a period of six months and offer 10 gigabytes of usable data per month. They can currently be obtained from six
Toronto Public Library Toronto Public Library (TPL) (french: Bibliothèque publique de Toronto) is a public library system in Toronto, Ontario. It is the largest public library system in Canada, and in 2008 had averaged a higher circulation per capita than any other pu ...
locations across the city.


Basic service package

In 2016 the CRTC mandated television service providers to offer a basic TV package to customers for a maximum price of $25, which can then be expanded upon by purchasing additional channels. The purpose of such a package is to make television service affordable for Canadians who otherwise might not be able to afford a package that includes various extra or undesired channels. The same has been proposed to be done for broadband service by having the CRTC determine a sufficient service quality of fixed price that ISPs will be mandated to offer to customers. As low cost internet connectivity options in Canada have been disappearing in favour of mid to high level packages priced at an average of around $50, it is believed that such regulation would contribute to the narrowing of the digital divide within Canada for those who lack sufficient access due to monetary reasons.


Improvement of digital literacy

The improvement of digital literacy among Canadians has the potential to shrink the divide which exists between citizens who make frequent use of ICTs and online resources, and those who don't. It is being recommended that Canada adapt a digital literacy strategy similar to those which already exist in countries such as the United States and
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
, ensuring that children are learning how to utilize technology efficiently and safely as early as kindergarten, and improving such digital skills throughout compulsory education until grade 12. Due to education systems within Canada being controlled at the provincial level it is difficult for the Federal government to implement digital literacy guidelines for schools within the country to use, despite the fact that an improvement in digital literacy would benefit all of Canada, making the facilitation of such a strategy a Federal issue. ICT use is also becoming a key way to facilitate job training and educate people regarding skills required to operate in a world with a constantly evolving digital landscape. As all but 1% of business establishments in Canada are considered either small or medium-sized enterprises, increased digital literacy would ensure that such businesses have the tools and knowledge required to make good use of the internet, as well as have the ability to better serve customers and remain competitive in the global market.


Opposing views

Commissioner Michael O'Rielly of the U.S.
Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdiction ...
is on record as having asserted that internet access "doesn't even come close to the threshold to be considered a basic human right."CBC article
/ref> He added that "People do a disservice by overstating its relevancy or stature in people's lives...People can and do live without internet access, and many lead very successful lives." The Financial Post noted that
Everett Rogers Everett M. "Ev" Rogers (March 6, 1931 – October 21, 2004) was an American communication theorist and sociologist, who originated the ''diffusion of innovations'' theory and introduced the term ''early adopter''. He was distinguished professor em ...
had described the stages of technology adoption and that "(w)hat critics consider a market failure is actually just the normal course of technology adoption."Financial Post article
/ref> The author concluded "there is no need to create new funding mechanisms or impose more layers of discretionary regulation in order to duplicate what market players are already doing in an efficient manner." As the argument continues, some Canadians are cutting back on basic needs like food and rent to stay online because they feel that internet access is a right rather than a luxury.


See also

*
Digital divide The digital divide is the unequal access to digital technology, including smartphones, tablets, laptops, and the internet. The digital divide creates a division and inequality around access to information and resources. In the Information Age in ...
*
Digital divide in the United States The digital divide in the United States refers to inequalities between individuals, households, and other groups of different demographic and socioeconomic levels in ''access'' to information and communication technologies ("ICTs") and in the '' ...
*
Open access in Canada In Canada the Institutes of Health Research effected a policy of open access in 2008, which in 2015 expanded to include the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council and Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. The Public Knowledge ...
to scholarly communication


References

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External links


Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
Society of Canada Internet in Canada Economic geography