Abstract
Worldwide it is estimated that there are over 5.3 billion mobile subscribers of which almost 4 billion are in the developing world (ITU, 2010b). For developing countries, the digital divide in terms of access has begun to close with the flow of digital information through core mobile services (e.g. voice, SMS) even in the poorest of countries. This offers the potential to capitalize on the economic benefits and improvements in quality of life that can come about with improved communications (Abraham, 2007; Rashid & Elder, 2009). In addition the rapid spread of this innovation in developing countries also paves the way for greater connectivity and access to the Internet via mobile devices and diffusing of value-added services such as mobile banking. However, uptake of more advanced mobile services other than basic telephony has lagged behind expectations, even for trendsetters like Finland (Bouwman et al., 2008). In developing countries the lag may be due in part to the affordability of access and the underdeveloped nature of basic services such as Internet access and mobile banking. However,where these services are more affordable and accessible (and increasingly so) it is important to investigate why persons have been slow to adopt mobile Internet
Recommended Citation
Mills, Annette; Tennant, Vanesa; and Chevers, Delroy A., "Understanding Mobile Internet Diffusion: The Case of Jamaica" (2011). GlobDev 2011. 6.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/globdev2011/6