Reality check of the day

"While the majority of [Irish] businesses have a broadband connection, 68% of businesses do not think that they operate applications which specifically require a broadband connection."
(Chambers Ireland survey of 611 businesses, July 2007)

Isn't it time to admit that the majority of us are too unsophisticated to 'get' broadband?

Comments

[Michele Neylon]

How many businesses are there in Ireland? 611 is a tiny sampling...
I'd suspect that a LOT of businesses that are heavily reliant on broadband don't even know it and a lot of others probably weren't even asked

[Justin Mason]

I don't do things that "specifically require" a car. Regardless, I still have one.

[Adrian]

Michele,

You're right -- 611 is a small sample. The actual number saying they mightn't need broadband could be far higher. (As well as lower.)

Justin, I'd say that most people who have a car need it. Not to survive, but to make life a lot easier.

Anyway, this is just a snapshot of what real opinion is out there, outside our tech-focused bubble.

[Cian]

There's some other interesting stuff in there, such as the finding in the sections "Awareness of Company Liability for Online Activities" and "Awareness of Prohibition On Viewing" - the survey is worth a read, or a scan at least. .

I won't question the survey any more then I question any - which is a lot. I'd love to see details such as how many people refused to answer the survey, just hung up etc. Again, more of a general point.

On the whole debate over availability / coverage VS lack of interest / couldn't care less about broadband... I'll stick to the view that it's a bit of a, a bit of b.

[Adam]

How many businesses are there in Ireland? 611 is a tiny sampling...
I'd suspect that a LOT of businesses that are heavily reliant on broadband don't even know it and a lot of others probably weren't even asked

In terms of surveys I don't think it's that tiny - for example most political polls tend to ask around 1,000 people at a time which I'd bet is a smaller percentage of potential Irish voters than what percentage 611 would be of Irish businesses.

Scanning through the figures there are some points to make - while 68% don't think they run programmes that specifically require BB, 53% of them still have it.

To me that apparent anomaly exists because the question is poorly phrased. In my mind it shouldn't have focused on programmes but on the business itself and should have asked "Do you think BB is important to your company?", "Do you think your business requires broadband?" or "Do you think BB is of benefit to your business?" (or something along those lines). The reason I say this is because the number of programmes that specifically require broadband is very limited; the number of programmes that benefit greatly from a faster connection is huge.

Another stat for those who think the BB situation in Ireland is bad - of those without BB around 45% have tried to upgrade and have either been unsuccessful (10%) or are awaiting installation (35%)... would be interesting to find out just how long they're waiting..