Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
A large share of respondents predict enormous potential for improved quality of life over the next 50 years for most individuals thanks to internet connectivity, although many said the benefits of a wired world are not likely to be evenly distributed. Andrew Tutt, an expert in law and author of “An FDA for Algorithms,” said, […]
Mobile phones are common across many emerging economies. Yet, mobile phone ownership is not equally embraced either among nations or within them. Across the 11 emerging economies surveyed as part of this report, up to one-in-five people do not own or even share a mobile phone. While myriad factors affect why people don’t own or […]
The comments in the following section are a sharp contrast to the utopian visions of equity and advancement described above. Whereas some see the future of the internet as a great equalizer, others warn that technology can just as easily be used for control and exploitation. Inequality on the rise: The growing divide between haves […]
The following sections share selections of comments from technology experts and futurists who elaborate on the ways internet use has shaped humanity over the past 50 years and consider the potential future of digital life. They are gathered under broad, overarching ideas, rather than being tied to the specific themes highlighted above. Many of the […]
Polling in different parts of the world can be very challenging, because what works in one country may not work in a different country.
A median of 7% across the 11 countries surveyed say they do not own a phone but do use someone else’s regularly. Although there are relatively few sharers in each country, they face the challenge of relying on others for their connectivity. Many individuals who share a mobile device report struggling financially with owning and […]
Large majorities in the 11 emerging and developing countries surveyed either own or share a mobile phone, and in every country it is much more common to own one’s own phone than to share it with someone else. In seven of these countries, half or more now use smartphones – and smartphone use is especially […]