Why Australia needs the NBN

The Luddites who feel Australia can survive on 20th Century telecommunications infrastructure need to read the 2012 GOBAL INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY REPORT, published today: http://insead-gitr.blogspot.com.au/

The report ranks Australia 17th behind New Zealand (14th), the UK (10th), and the USA (8th). Technological leaders include Sweden # 1; Singapore #2, Korea #12 and Hong Kong #13.

Key findings from the report, Living in a Hyperconnected World, include:

• Leveraging high-speed connectivity is crucial for competitiveness.
• Countries performing strongly in the Networked Readiness Index all have a holistic strategy to developing technology; there are no weaknesses in any of the key metrics.
• Defining technology standards by the existence of technology infrastructure is not enough; components such as affordability and skills are crucial to success.
• The ‘digital divide’ still exists – not just in terms of infrastructure but also in terms of the skills necessary to make use of technology to better social and economic conditions.
  

  Australia -v- All High Income Countries

Arguments around the most cost effective way to develop the National Broadband Network (NBN) to achieve a holistic communications infrastructure are valid, but anything less than an integrated fibre-optic network will be second rate and second best and cost the economy dearly in the years to come. We have a long way to go to make the ‘top 10’.