The country outperforms the EU average on most of the benchmark indicators in the report and sports some of the highest levels in internet connectivity and broadband penetration.
Another highlight of the report is that Europe's digital sector has made strong progress since 2005 where 56% of Europeans now regularly use the internet, of which 80% via a high-speed connection, making Europe the world leader in broadband internet. Europe is the world's first truly mobile continent with more mobile subscribers than citizens (a take up rate of 119%).
The UK ranks sixth in terms of the percentage of regular and frequent internet users in the population and is top of the list when it comes to the share of enterprises selling online (one in three).
However, there are indicators where Britain is lagging at the bottom of the EU table. When compared to their European peers, both UK citizens and enterprises very rarely use the opportunities provided by different e-government services. British businesses also lag behind in using applications for integrating internal business processes.
The report also summarises the results of five years' of EU policy under the Barroso Commission promoting the latest communication technologies, new networks and services and creative media content.
Viviane Reding, EU commissioner for information society and media, said: "Europe's digital economy has tremendous potential to generate huge revenues across all sectors, but to turn this advantage into sustainable growth and new jobs, governments must show leadership by adopting coordinated policies that dismantle existing barriers to new services."
The report also outlines the challenges ahead if Europe is to remain competitive. “These young people are intensive internet users and are also highly demanding consumers. To release the economic potential of these 'digital natives', we must make access to digital content an easy and fair game."
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Quelle/Source: Information World Review, 05.08.2009
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