Despite Falling Broadband Prices Internet Uptake Lags – Report
THE prices for mobile voice, mobile data and fixed broadband services are falling steadily around the world and in some countries even dramatically.
This is according to a new statistical report − Measuring Digital Development: ICT Price Trends 2019 – released by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) this week.
The report, which is a global analysis of the prices of telecommunication services, reveals the reduction in price relative to income is even more dramatic, which would suggest that, globally, telecommunication and ICT services are becoming more affordable.
“Keeping telecommunication and digital services as affordable as possible has always been important to ensure broader Internet uptake, especially for lower-income households and consumers,” says Houlin Zhao, ITU secretary-general. “In the face of COVID-19, this is more vital than ever. People who do not have access to the Internet may not be able to access information about how to protect themselves from coronavirus, telework, learn remotely and connect with families and friends during quarantine.”
The falling prices, however, don’t translate into rapidly increasing
Internet penetration rates, especially in least developed countries (LDCs), the international body found.
This, it says, points to the fact that affordability may not be the only barrier to Internet uptake; rather factors such as low level of education, lack of relevant content, lack of content in local languages, lack of digital skills, and a low-quality Internet connection may also prevent effective use.
According to the report, mobile data basket prices have decreased from 2013 to 2019 relative to gross national income (GNI) per capita.
“The global average price of a mobile data basket of at least 1.5GB dropped from $20.4 in 2013 to $13.2 in 2019, equivalent to a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of -7%, driven mostly by the 2013 to 2015 subperiod, followed by relative stability over the past four years.
“Over the past six years, there has been an explosion in the number of active mobile data subscriptions, increasing from 27.4 to 83 per 100 inhabitants, or a CAGR of 20.3%.”
At a regional outlook, the report determined the least affordable baskets relative to income are found in Africa, at 11.4% of GNI per capita on average.
The other regions are considerably less expensive, it states. “Europeans have access to the cheapest baskets, at 0.8% of GNI per capita, followed by the CIS region (2.2%), Asia and the Pacific (2.7%), the Americas (2.9%) and the Arab States (4.1%).”
“In Africa, the most affordable baskets are available in Mauritius and Gabon, the only two countries with a basket below the Broadband Commission target of 2%. In the next three countries, Seychelles, Nigeria and Botswana, prices accounted for between 2% and 3% of GNI per capita, suggesting there is a good chance the Broadband Commission target may be reached in these countries by
2023.
“In many African countries, however, mobile data baskets are still out of reach for a large part of the population, costing more than 10% of GNI per capita, in situations where incomes are already limited.
“In eight out of 10 African countries, the data allowance included in the cheapest price (with at least 1.5GB) did not exceed 2GB. The highest allowance for this price is observed in Botswana and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, amounting to 5GB.