CHAPTER 2

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

INTRODUCTION
In this chapter, the purpose of this literature review is to provide the reader with a
general overview of access to digital divide which defined as the full process of
appropriation of technology by users. It starts with motivation and attitudes and moves
on to the process of finding physical access. Then, having learned sufficient digital
skills, users will realize a particular frequency and diversity of usage of digital media. In
all these phases significant divides are observed. After the year 2000 the importance of
digital divides shifted from physical access to skills and usage. However, the main
media effects of all these divides are unequal benefits and unequal participation in
society.

Digital Divide is used to cover a broad range of social differences in access to and use of digital
equipment and services, mostly notably personal computers, and the ability to access the internet
in terms of both physical connection and facility of use. Digital divide is the gap between those
who have computer and internet access and those who do not. This is also whether people are
computer and technology literate or not and whether they have these facilities available to them.
The term divide is mostly used to refer to the economic gap that exists between the poor and
richer members of the society. In relation to technology, the OECD defines digital divide as ” the
gap between individuals, households, businesses and geographic areas at different socio-
economic levels with regard both to their opportunities to access information and communication
technologies (ICTs) and to their use of the Internet for a wide variety of activities.” As such, the
digital divide refers to the disparities in access of communication technology experienced by
people.

The major cause of the digital divide is access. Although this is the major contributing factor,
there are other factors that contribute which include the following: cost of technology, access for
the disabled, lack of skills, lack of education, lack of information, and lower-performance
computers. The gap in a digital divide may exist for a number of reasons. Most commonly, a
digital divide stems from poverty and the economic barriers that limit resources and prevent
people from obtaining or otherwise using newer technologies.

Bridging the digital divide nationwide, one in four students do not have an adequate internet
connection or devices for remote learning, leaving between 15 and 16 million students unable to
access school regularly, according to an analysis (Common Sense Media). The global digital
divide also contributes to the inequality of access to goods and services available through
technology. Computers and the Internet provide users with improved education, which can lead
to higher wages; the people living in nations with limited access are therefore disadvantaged.
The Digital Divide has a tremendous impact upon the culture and the people of every region.
Technology effects every culture in different ways. ... Because they do not have access to
technology people in technology poor nations suffer. However, in order to bridge the digital
divide, people need access to technology.

Despite, clocking in an impressive 27-percent increase in Internet penetration in 2016, the so-
called digital divide still persists in the Philippines, a phenomenon that has been robbing almost
half of its population of the benefits of the World Wide Web for years now. Based on data from
social-media consultancy firm We Are Social, roughly 58 percent of the population—or about 60
million Filipinos—now has access to the Internet. This stunning jump from 47 percent in 2015
means that more than half of the population now enjoys the benefits of the Internet. But on the
other side of that spectrum are the Filipinos who still do not have access to the Internet.
According to experts and players in the digital arena, the digital divide resulted in striking gaps
in three areas: education, information and communication, and finance.

Missed Opportunities

Voyager Innovations Inc. President Orlando B. Vea said the digital divide has and will continue
to separate those without Internet connection from the huge socioeconomic opportunities that the
Internet offers. “The most striking effect is on the daily lives of those left behind. They are cut
off from the vast social and economic opportunities that mobile and Internet technologies bring.
That’s the main striking effect of the digital divide,” he told the BusinessMirror. “ The Internet
has a wealth of materials that can help individuals learn almost anything. One may opt to get free
language lessons on YouTube, Google, or even Facebook. Even class modules from renowned
universities in the world are available on the Internet. “Whether it be news, emergency reports,
etc., information is increasingly available in real time at close to zero cost through technology.
The digital divide denies groups this valuable piece of access that allows people to remain safe,
make better decisions, and live better and more informed lives,” (Rubio, 2017)

Human Rights

Another surface that is limited by this gap is the universal right to communicate. “The digital
divide affects the right of Filipinos to communicate and to information,” Better Broadband
Alliance convener Mary Grace Mirandilla-Santos said. The UN has already declared that the
Internet is a human right, as access to it is not merely a privilege for the rich. Explaining that it is
a basic need, the intergovernmental agency said the Internet is an avenue where people can enjoy
their rights to freedom of expression and opinion. This divide persists despite the fact that the
Philippines is considered as the social-media capital of the world, with data from We Are Social
showing that Filipinos spend an average of eight hours and 59 minutes on the Web—the highest
in the world.
Financial, commercial exclusion

Another missed opportunity for the digitally marginalized community is the promise of digital
financial services, seen as the last mile that connects financial products and services to their end-
customers who are unreached and overlooked by traditional market players because of physical
and cost barriers. The Central Bank defines financial inclusion as a state wherein “there is
effective access to a wide range of financial products and services by all,” such as savings,
payments, credit and investments. It is, in simpler terms, the drive to expand the coverage and
reach of the financial system to as many stakeholders in a society. Financial inclusion, thus,
carries the potential of improving the well-being of the unserved and underserved markets, such
as the low-income and marginalized, micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), overseas
Filipinos and their beneficiaries, agriculture and agrarian-reform sectors, the youth, women,
indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, among others. “Electronic money and mobile
banking offer the potential to reach remote areas, although the uptake of these financial services
leaves much to be desired,” BSP Deputy Governor Nestor A. Espenilla Jr. said.

The digital divide could be attributed to the lack of telecommunications facilities in the
Philippines. It is a problem that persisted due to a confluence of reasons: one is the government’s
refusal to invest in digital infrastructure, another is the bureaucracy in seeking permits by private
companies from local governments.