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The National Digital Inclusion 2010 Conference in London this week served to highlight the good work taking place to get the rest of the population of the UK online.
Twenty years after it was first invented it seems incredible to think that there are ten million people in the UK who have never experienced the joys of the World Wide Web, yet that was the figure widely quoted at the conference.
Jonathan Welfare is chairman of the Nominet Trust, an organisation that helps finance projects aimed at getting new users online. He said this meant that for businesses there are a large number of potential customers oblivious to their services.
"There are dozens of applications and opportunities the web can offer people that they may not be aware of. This can include all sorts of ecommerce uses such as online shopping that people are missing out on because they don't realise they can use the internet for this purpose," he said.
"As such, encouraging the use of the internet among those who currently do not use or have access is vital not just to help communities from a social perspective but to help drive business to companies across the country."
Welfare added that he thought that the government was doing "a fantastic job" in taking the lead on digital inclusion and said it was pleasing to see that all the parties were united on this vision, underlining its importance to the future of the UK.
The organisation has currently funded 36 projects around the country, to the tune of £1.9m, and will be launching a new website later this year to help improve the application process for funding.
12 Mar 2010
