Network Society

People and Organizations Online (Stage 3)

According to Canada’s ICT profile, nearly 53% of Canadian individuals aged 15 and over had used the Internet in 2000 and a large proportion (42%) had an Internet connection at home. Canadian households are embracing the Internet in growing numbers. In 2002, 62% contained at least one regular Internet user, up from 29% in 1997. Home-use (51%) surpassed use from work (34%), followed by use from school (23%), other locations (10%), and public libraries (8%).

Men use the Internet more than women. In addition, French Canadians were less likely to use the Internet than Anglo Canadians, while people living in rural Canada were less likely than urban dwellers to go on-line. Although the digital divide in Canada is generally closing, differences in ICT penetration between the lowest income and very high income groups persist.

Locally Relevant Content (Stage 3 )

According to Canadian commission of official languages, Dyane Adam, one in four Canadians speak French and while Internet penetration is rising in all the Canadian provinces, it remains lowest in Quebec. A commission study showed French is absent from 62 percent of 42 foreign embassy websites surveyed, while English is missing from 5 percent. Michael Geist, a law professor who specializes in the Internet at the University of Ottawa, says it's doubtful the Canadian government would pressure other governments to provide bilingual websites. "English is clearly the dominant language on the Internet. I don't know that there's a divide being created between English and French. English is the language of choice for so many." Therefore, English is still the primary language used and French is the second language.

The Government of Canada initiated The Community Access Program (CAP) and administered by Industry Canada at aims to provide Canadians with affordable public access to the Internet and the skills they need to use it effectively. With the combined efforts of the federal, provincial and territorial governments, community groups, social agencies, libraries, schools, volunteer groups and the business community, CAP helps Canadians, wherever they live, take advantage of emerging opportunities in the new global knowledge-based economy. Under CAP, public locations like schools, libraries and community centers act as “on-ramps” to the Information Highway, and provide computer support and training.

ICTs in Everyday Life (Stage 3 / Stage 4)

Nearly one-half (49%) of regular Internet-use households and a majority of regular business users (58%) connected to the Internet with broadband technologies.

Mobile services were the most competitive of the telecommunications services markets in Canada in 1999, while the local wireline market was the most concentrated.

Among users an estimated 79% of men and 70% of women searched the Internet for information on goods and services, by far the most popular activity reported after e-mailing. Teens aged 15 to 19 and seniors were less likely than others to use the Internet for this reason. Men were more likely to surf for news than women. Women, however, were more likely than men to search for health and medical information - 52% compared with 41%. About 40% of Internet users, or 5.3 million individuals, said they had accessed information on government programs on the Internet.

The Internet has become a regular tool of communication for most of its users; about two-thirds of them send and receive e-mail several times a week. Moreover, e-mail has helped extend lines of communication beyond national boundaries. Canadians email respondence with people outside Canada, 43% of Canadian-born Internet users indicated that they used e-mail to communicate internationally.

Below is a chart of Activities Online, Canadians with Internet Access from retailinteractive.com :

According to Youthmobile.com a survey found 75 percent of Canadian subscribers use their mobile phones once a day and 45 percent check their voicemail at least once a day.  Respondents with wireless phones report using them an average of 19 minutes per day, two-thirds of which is spent on personal calls. Sixty-eight percent of Canadians surveyed are post-paid subscribers(receive a monthly bill).

ICTs in the Workplace (Stage 3 / Stage 4)

According to a newly released survey by Ipsos-Reid, 38% of Canadian workers had access to the internet at their workplace as of late 2002, up slightly from 34% in 2000. The majority (71%) of Internet time spent online at work is business-related (10.8 hours).

E-mailing is the most prominent business-related use of the Internet—88% of those who use the Internet at work indicate that they send work-related e-mails. Conducting research about their industry (73%) is the second most popular activity, and about half search for public information about their company (47%) while 45% research the competition. A slightly lower percentage (43%) shop around for company-related purchases while only 27% are conducting business-related transactions online. Far fewer conduct business-related online banking (11%).