Universal Broadband: An Analysis of Global Stakeholders and the Pursuit of the Common Good

A new digital divide is emerging both within and between nations that is due to inequalities in broadband Internet access. We show using data from the OECD and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) that this new digital divide is a global problem that can be observed in both developed and developing countries. To bridge the global broadband divide, organizations and individuals must collaborate to provide broadband access to a converged high-speed Internet for both rich and poor citizens worldwide. Most previous research has focused on the broadband divide in developed countries and the role of several factors in bridging this divide, including competition to provide broadband service to businesses and consumers. We argue that addressing this global problem is an ethical imperative that requires bridging the perspectives of multiple stakeholders and applying their collective resources, power and will. We develop a comprehensive framework, using stakeholder theory, which identifies the global stakeholders as well as the roles and responsibilities that these stakeholders must assume to balance their self-interest with serving the common good. Our framework also highlights relationships between key stakeholders, namely governments and their citizens, businesses in the information and communication technology (ICT) industries, and other organizations. Using this framework and recent ITU and World Bank data, we make four important observations that can guide governments and other stakeholders in bridging the broadband divide in pursuit of the common good: (1) A national authority that regulates the activities of the many stakeholders within a country’s telecommunications sector has a positive impact on broadband adoption. (2) A shared financial investment in the physical infrastructure and human capital required to deploy and operate broadband networks also helps increase broadband diffusion. (3) An independent regulatory authority and shared financial investment are at least as important as telecommunications service provider competition in expanding broadband Internet access. And, (4) service provider competition has a greater impact on broadband affordability than it does on broadband diffusion.