At a time when Internet use in academic, research and business circles worldwide continues to skyrocket, over half of the people in Taiwan have no access to the information superhighway at home, school or work.
According to a report put out by AC Nielsen, just over 10 million people in Taiwan report having access to the Internet. The remaining 13 million people living in Taiwan have apparently been left out of the digital revolution.
The information was collected through random calling and speaking with residents throughout the country.
Some officials blamed the lack of Internet access on perception. Many people have access right around the corner but have yet to find a reason to get online.
"All schools in Taiwan, from universities down to elementary schools have a computer center and all students can access the Net. Right now, we're working on putting more computers in every classroom, so that every school has a similar computer infrastructure," said Tu Ai-pao (杜愛葆), a senior administrator at the Ministry of Education.
Tu did, however, point out a growing digital divide which separates the city from countryside across the nation.
Throughout Taiwan's larger cities, Taipei, Taichung, Kaohsiung, people have much higher access to the Internet. So much so, teachers in these cities can assign homework requiring the use of a computer. Outside the cities, it's a different story, where most people do not own computers, nor do they have other avenues for getting online.
AC Nielsen's NetWatch also had a survey to support this. The company says that not only do people living in the countryside access the Net at a much lower rate, they found that only 23.3 percent of people in Taiwan's countryside even have access to the Internet.
According to Tu, "it all depends on the local government" to promote Internet use and find public areas for people to get online.
Officials at the Ministry of Transportation and Communications responded to the Nielsen report by saying the problem of Internet access is a household matter, not a government problem. Since all of Taiwan is wired for telephone use, anyone with a modem and computer can get on the Internet.
Moreover, the bureau is working on a plan to implement broadband Internet access throughout the nation, even in areas that may not be able to support it financially.
The government ministry could be right. In Taiwan, only 38 percent of people with access to the Internet actually use it -- the lowest percentage in all of Asia -- according to AC Nielsen.
New Zealand came in first in this category, with 55 percent of people with access to the Internet putting the system to use.
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