The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has published the 7th edition of the ‘Measuring the Information Society (MIS report 2015). This annual publication provides essential information about ICT development and studies in the field of costs and affordability of ICT services, measured in accordance with internationally agreed methodologies. The latest edition of the survey is the ‘Measuring the Information Society Report 2015’.

This 7th edition of the report provides a useful perspective and is an informative tool in the mapping of strategies to grow the ICT sector and drive the socio-economic development of countries worldwide.

Data from recent benchmark studies of Curaçao, have been published in the ‘Statistical Publication Telecommunication, Broadband and Television Indicators EOY 2015‘. However these are not included in the MIS report, as Curaçao is registered at the ITU as a member of the Kingdom of the Netherlands as opposed to being registered as an independent member.

Highlights MIS report 2015

The MIS report 2015 elaborates on the following topics:

• Global ICT goals and targets
• A global analysis of the ICT Development Index (IDI)
• A regional and country analysis of the IDI
• The price and affordability of ICTs
• The impact of Internet of Things

Find below a brief rundown of the highlights of the report.

Overall ICT Development Index value improvement (IDI)

One of the core features of the MIS report is the ‘ICT Development Index’ (IDI). It ranks the performance of countries across the world, based on ICT infrastructure, ICT usage and ICT skills. The MIS report is geared towards providing an objective performance assessment of countries worldwide based on quantitative indicators and benchmarks that play a key role in the ICT policy discussions of ITU member states.

The MIS report 2015 analyses ICT developments during the previous five years, starting in 2010. The results show that all of the 167 economies included in the IDI, improved their IDI values between 2010 and 2015. The IDI values of all economies together reflect a continuous evolvement of the global information society.

Additionally the report shows that a number of developing countries have experienced substantial increases in mobile-broadband penetration, household ICT access and international internet bandwidth. This confirms the importance of developing enabling environments for ICT investment and innovation and the relevance of policy approaches of these more dynamic countries to other developing countries.

Mobile-cellular & mobile-broadband service prices continue to fall

The latest gathered survey data indicate that the price of mobile-cellular services continues to fall worldwide.

In Least Developed Countries (LDCs) from 29% of the Gross National Income per capita (GNI) in 2010 to 14% in 2014, as the number of mobile-cellular subscriptions approaches 7.1 billion and mobile network population coverage reaches close to 95 per cent.

Additionally, the report shows that mobile-broadband prices have also fallen significantly and are expected to continue to do so over the next few years due to the volatility and innovativeness of emerging pricing schemes providing viable solutions for low-income populations.

The Internet-of-Things

The MIS report 2015 concludes with emphasizing that ICT developments are underpinning and accelerating the progress of IoT, which is expected to have a significant impact on nearly every industry in societies worldwide.
The report focuses on how IoT and big data analytics can help address major development challenges related to, megacities, climate change, food security and resource management.

Although wireless coverage is almost universal through satellite and mobile networks, the ICT connectivity required for unlocking the full potential of IoT may be more demanding. Indeed, while some IoT applications may run with low-speed and low-capacity connectivity, others will require high-capacity broadband connections that rely on fixed-broadband infrastructure, larger international internet bandwidth and backbone capacity.

Download the ‘Measuring the Information Society 2015’for a detailed elaboration of the study.

(Source: ITU. BT&P Publication period: 2016)