弥合数字鸿沟不仅需要访问

Recently, we reported that the global Internet population has exceeded 1 billion people. That’s great, but that news comes with the stark reality that access is not equal. In most Western nations and some in Asia, access penetration ranges above 70% and up to over 90%. In other areas — such as rural China and Africa, the percentage of the population that can get online falls to single digits.

最近，我们报道全球互联网人口已超过10亿 。 太好了，但是这个新闻伴随着一个现实，那就是访问不平等。 在大多数西方国家和亚洲一些国家中，访问普及率在70％以上至90％以上。 在其他地区(例如中国的农村和非洲)，可以上网的人口比例下降到个位数。

That’s called the digital divide (which more broadly refers to access to computer and information technology, but we’re more concerned with web access here). Though more and more users continue to get online, there is actually a growing divide between those who have access and those who don’t. While more middle and upper class users are getting online, those living in poverty are falling further behind.

这就是所谓的数字鸿沟(广义上指的是对计算机和信息技术的访问，但是我们在这里更关注网络访问)。 尽管越来越多的用户继续上网，但实际上，拥有访问权限的用户与没有访问权限的用户之间的鸿沟越来越大。 当越来越多的中上阶层用户上网时，生活在贫困中的人则进一步落后。

But just making access available is only a small part of solving the problem. In the UK, for example, the Chief Executive of the Office of Communications (Ofcom) Stephen Carter mandated today that every home in Britain would be broadband-enabled by 2012. The mandate aims to lessen the digital divide, and it certainly will help in that regard, but enabling access is only part of the solution.

但是，仅提供访问权限只是解决问题的一小部分。 例如，在英国，通信办公室(Ofcom)首席执行官斯蒂芬·卡特(Stephen Carter) 今日下令，到2012年，英国的每个家庭都将启用宽带。该任务旨在缩小数字鸿沟，这无疑将有助于这种情况，但启用访问权限只是解决方案的一部分。

Of the 39% of British households that have access to broadband already, but have no connection, 84% either cannot afford it, or cannot get access due to a technical hurdle unrelated to availability, such as not having a landline installed. Further, 30% of homes in the UK have no PC, which means that in addition to the monthly cost of broadband access, there is the upfront technology cost of purchasing a web enabled device with which to get online.

在39％的英国家庭已经可以使用宽带但没有连接的家庭中，有84％的家庭负担不起宽带或由于与可用性无关的技术障碍(例如未安装座机)而无法访问宽带。 此外，英国30％的家庭没有PC，这意味着，除了每月的宽带访问成本外，还需要购买用于上网的具有网络功能的设备的前期技术成本。

Just enabling access will clearly not be enough to erase the digital divide. Service and technology prices need to come down or access needs to be subsidized for those who can’t afford it.

仅仅启用访问权限显然不足以消除数字鸿沟。 服务和技术价格需要降低，或者需要为那些负担不起的人提供访问补贴。

Another hurdle is education. “The real challenge,” Charlie Ponsonby, CEO of broadband comparison service Simplifydigital. “is skilling disadvantaged households to use the Internet.”

另一个障碍是教育。 “真正的挑战，”宽带比较服务Simplifydigital首席执行官Charlie Ponsonby。 “正在使处境不利的家庭熟练使用互联网。”

There are 17 million adults who have little or no experience using a PC or the Internet in the United Kingdom. “For these households the challenge is more about training them to see the benefit and use the Internet, rather than a broadband connection per se,” says Ponsonby. In order for the digital divide to truly be closed, households that have not had access will need training to be “caught up” to more affluent users for whom computer and Internet skills have become second nature.

在英国，有1700万成年人几乎没有使用PC或Internet的经验。 “对于这些家庭而言，挑战更多是要培训他们以了解收益和使用互联网，而不是本身就是宽带连接，”庞森比说。 为了真正消除数字鸿沟，那些无法获得服务的家庭将需要接受培训，以“赶上”那些计算机和互联网技能已经成为第二性的更加富裕的用户。

I’ve focused mainly on the UK — which is actually one of the more connected countries in the world with 60% of the population on broadband (and close to 70% online) — only because I happened to have stats for Britain due to today’s Ofcom report. However, the ideas presented here could easily be applied to any poor population around the world.

我主要关注英国-实际上，英国是世界上联系最紧密的国家之一，宽带人口占60％(在线接近70％)，这是因为由于今天的英国，我碰巧有英国的统计数据Ofcom报告。 但是，这里提出的想法很容易适用于世界各地的任何贫困人口。

翻译自: https://www.sitepoint.com/bridging-the-digital-divide-takes-more-than-just-access/