Broadband : towards a national plan for Scotland

Sutherland, Ewan and Lockyer, Cliff (2012) Broadband : towards a national plan for Scotland. Fraser of Allander Economic Commentary, 36 (2). pp. 67-82. ISSN 2046-5378

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Abstract

The development of national broadband plans has been used by many countries to join up different areas of governmental and regulatory activities and to set ambitious targets for ubiquitous access to and use of the latest fixed and wireless networks and services. For Scotland this requires working within EU and UK legislative frameworks, which have also provided the bulk of the finance for interventions. It also requires an understanding of the significant weaknesses of urban broadband adoption compared to other UK and EU nations and of its e-commerce supply and demand. While resources are being targeted at rural and remote areas, more are needed to close the social digital divide, which is unavoidable if the stated ambition of being world class is to be achieved.

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