Who is left behind? Exploring the characteristics of China's broadband non-adopting families

Chun Liu and Lian Wang

Telecommunications Policy, 2021, vol. 45, issue 9

Abstract: China has made significant progress in broadband development. As of September 2018, 95% of China's population was covered by 4G networks. However, our estimates show that nearly 30% of China's families did not use broadband that year. This study attempts to investigate the characteristics of China's broadband left-behind families. Overall, consistent with the findings for other countries, families with a lower socioeconomic status are more likely to be broadband non-adopters. In the information society, older, poorer, rural and less educated families are left behind. It is recommended that the Chinese government shift from a top-down investment-driven policy to a user-centered demand-driven policy to address the digital divide.

Keywords: Digital divide; Broadband nonadopter; China; Universal service (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (7)

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DOI: 10.1016/j.telpol.2021.102187

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