The government’s aim is that, by 2020, Australia will be among the world’s leading digital economies based on key indicators such as broadband penetration and usage rankings.
The digital economy is essential to Australia’s productivity, global competitiveness and improved social wellbeing. In the Australia’s Digital Economy: Future Directions paper, the government said that the digital economy refers to:
‘the global network of economic and social activities that are enabled by information and communications technologies, such as the internet, mobile and sensor networks.’
Greater digital engagement can boost productivity. It can bridge distances and improve service delivery for regional and rural Australians. It can improve educational and health outcomes, allow for better management of the country’s growing and ageing population, promote social inclusion and facilitate more environmentally sustainable management of the built and natural environment. To ensure that these benefits are properly realised, it is important to ensure that Australian households and businesses understand how to engage safely and securely online.
The government’s commitment to build the enabling infrastructure for the digital economy, in particular the commitment to build the NBN, will allow Australia to participate in and enjoy the benefits of the global digital economy. The NBN will offer ubiquitous coverage which will allow all Australian households and businesses to participate in the digital economy regardless of where they live. It will support high speed symmetrical services giving more people access to new tools to manage their business or receive education services. It will also offer greater stability and reliability of broadband services to support a growing number of critical applications, such as health.
Australia presently lags behind the world’s leading digital economies. The OECD reports that, as of June 2010, Australia was ranked 18th amongst member states for broadband penetration. The World Economic Forum ranked Australia 17th in its 2010-2011 Network Readiness Index, behind such competitor economies as the US, UK, Singapore, Hong Kong, Korea, and Taiwan. The Network Readiness Index measures how economies leverage information and communications technology advances for increased growth and development.
By investing in the NBN, the government is putting in place the essential underlying infrastructure, which will form the platform for Australia’s future engagement in the digital economy. Find out more about the key characteristics of the NBN that will support Australia becoming a leading global digital economy by 2020..
Australia will have successfully made this transition when the efficient use of digital technologies has become so interwoven with citizens’ business, professional and personal lives, that they move seamlessly between the digital and physical world as appropriate. A recent report by the Boston Consulting Group on the impact of the internet on the UK economy noted:
“While it may once have made sense to ask about the size of the “electricity economy”, that question is now moot. Electricity is fully woven into the fabric of the developed economies.”
To achieve this vision, the government has released a National Digital Economy Strategy. The Strategy outlines eight Digital Economy Goals, the Way Forward, Government Initiatives and Industry Initiatives.
