The Little Data Book on Information and Communication Technology 2011

Since the late 1990s access to information and communication technologies has seen tremendous growth, driven primarily by the wireless technologies and liberalization of telecommunications markets. Mobile communications have evolved from simple voice and text services to diversified innovative applications and mobile broadband internet. The number of mobile cellular subscriptions reached approximately 4.7 billion globally, including people in remote and rural areas. The number of Internet users has risen constantly and now tops 1.8 billion people, with the number of broadband connections more than 470 million in 2009. The little data book on information and communication technology 2011 charts the progress of this revolution for 213 countries around the world. It provides comparable statistics on the sector for 2000 and 2009 across a range of indicators, enabling readers to readily compare countries. This book includes indicators covering the economic and social context, the structure of the information and communication technology sector, sector efficiency and capacity, and sector performance related to access, usage, quality, affordability, trade, and applications.