Cybercafe - Utrecht, Holland
What can be done to provide Universal Access to the Internet? Various solutions are being offered worldwide. These solutions include using schools, public libraries, post and telegraph offices (PTOs), telecenters, and even cybercafes. With the exception of cybercafes which are found in major urban centers across the globe catering to ‘wealthy’ tourists, the ability of a country to implement these solutions can vary greatly. However, that does not mean that we should not see what is available.
Public schools are a popular solution. According to the Federal Communications Law Journal (1997), the Telecommunications Act of 1996 specified that public schools should have Internet access. In other words, public schools should have the technology needed to connect to the Internet. It does not specify how teachers and students will learn to use the equipment nor how the equipment will be maintained or updated. As Theodore Roszak points out, the richer schools have the better training and equipment, so access in the public schools tends to “reinforce a two-tier system of education for the rich and the poor.”
Another popular solution is providing Internet access at public libraries. While there are concerns with liability issues, this solutions has a lot of possibilities. Roszak suggested that libraries are our “best hope of turning the sprawling potentiality of information technology into a true public utility.” According to a 1998 article in Library Management, libraries in the United Kingdom are working on providing Internet access. That is also happening in the United States. One example is the small library in my hometown of Plainview, Texas.
Some countries are looking to put Internet access points in public PTOs which have traditionally provided telephone access. Estonia has created telecenters, or public Internet access points, even on remote islands in the Baltic sea. As mentioned earlier, cybercafes are a popular access solution. Cybercafes allow their patrons to access the Internet for a fixed fee, and this is not a realistic solution for truly equal access. They cater more to the ‘middle class’ and tourists, but could be an alternative solution depending on what happens with costs and profits in the next decade or so.
For more information about access issues, read the article by the Center for Democracy and Technology. If you are concerned about issues concerning equal access for those with disabilities, another good article has been written by The International Center for Disability Resources on the Internet (ICDRI). ICDRI and other organizations are working to make sure that the access debate does not neglect those who have special needs.
A Question or two to think about:
What would you do to help someone else have Universal Access? Would you be willing to have your tax dollars pay for it? Would you volunteer to help train someone else? Would you lobby for legislation to control media monopolies?
Would you?
Here are some things that other people are doing:
Forums for Discussing
Accessibility Issues