Is Europe Behind the US in Internet Usage?
by David Wolf
Global competition and technological dominance; the great shakeout continues...
Red-tiled roofs in Florence meet narrow alleys separating Weimar's fachwerk houses. Goethe's masterpieces from yesteryear might be good for German culture, but Europe's runner-up standing in global technology measurements is only a handicap. American firms usually dominate fields of leading edge technology, especially in the lucrative software market. The US enjoys more than 70 computers per 100 people - more than twice the rate of EU country averages. Technology industries vital to future market booms are often dominated by a strong American presence as well - US companies lead in world-class drugs and gene engineering patents. The stage is already set for the US to benefit heavily from the ever-increasing forecast benefits of biomedical engineering and nanotechnology.
So why is Europe behind the United States in Internet usage? Because, they're just trying to catch up. As Graham Mitchell of the US Department of Commerce wrote, "In the twenty-five years following World War II, the United States enjoyed global competitive and technological dominance." 1 In 1950, the United States economy produced 39.8% of the world's gross domestic product, but this figure had dropped to 24% by 1992. Europe's growth may have eaten into US global economic dominance, but the EU is still far behind. And America's recent tech boom only broadened the gap: "If Europe had grown as fast as the United States in the 1990s, the additional GDP it would have generated would have been the equivalent to the addition of a country the size of Italy - the world's eighth largest economy."
The current state of technology in the US and Europe is well represented by one simple figure: IT investment in the United States was more than twice that of European Union members during the 1990s. "The United States devotes a higher percentage of the GDP to information technology spending than any other country. Only New Zealand (with 2.6% of GDP), Sweden (2.4%) and Switzerland (2.4%) come close to spending in the United States. It is also noteworthy that Japan, with its historically high rates of productivity growth, spends only 1.4% of its GDP on IT." 3 The greater investment in IT paid off for American businesses establishing first mover advantage in global markets. "According to the U.S. Bureau of the Census' 1995 Statistical Abstract of the United States, the U.S., with 4.6% of the world's population and 21.3% of its Gross National Product, has installed about 50% of the global computing power."
But just how far behind is the European business community? As of 2001, 74% of US small businesses had adopted Internet business solutions regarding e-marketing. However, only 52% of European-based companies in the UK, France, and Germany utilize the Internet for e-marketing campaigns - a rate far less than the EU's American competitors. 4
That Europe is technologically behind is good for established US companies seeking to leverage competitive advantage on a global stage. Growth in Internet subscriptions has slowed to single digits in the US, while double-digit growth continues in European markets. On the other side of the world, South Korean Internet users spend more time online and view more pages than any other group in the world. 5 Attributed to the high penetration of broadband data access in Seoul, the country's densely populated capitol city, South Korea's high rate of Internet usage may be the harbinger of good tidings for France, a country committing nearly $5 billion to the development of nation-wide broadband net access by 2005. 6 As the second largest EU country economy and one of the most technologically backward, France's vital signs are an important indicator of European IT trends.
David Wolf has worked in the adult industry for three years. He specializes in international marketing strategy and web spider creation. David holds a BS in Business Information Systems, is currently pursuing his MS in Strategic Intelligence, and can be reached for follow-up inquiries at Wolf@AdultWebmasterConsultants.com or through www.adultwebmasterconsultants.com.
|
Printer
Friendly Version