Beijing Plans Bridges the Urban-Rural Digital Divide

I was having a discussion with a friend about internet. We were mainly talking about how to cope with isolation, especially when we move to areas faraway from our family and close, long-time friends. One of things we talked about is the internet, and how it can be used as a remedy for isolation (if used appropriately and maturely). The internet opens many venues for the social life of people. It can also serve as a significant venue for economic prosperity, allowing people to get involved in e-commerce with just a click of the button, without a physical place of business, or even physical inventory (via "Drop shipping") In fact, a common discussion of the internet is how e-commerce is replacing much of the traditional brick-and-mortar commerce. Much of the new technologies coming out also require sufficient internet access for its use.

In the future, economic divides may be determined by the digital divide, where those who do not have sufficient and speedy access to the internet will be left behind economically and technologically. Needless to say, access to the internet will be critical in the present, as well as the coming epoch. To not be connected is to fall further behind. A move by Beijing to provide internet access to it's poorer rural communities is an attempt to bridge the wide rural-urban divide that many China watchers emphasize in their conversation on China.

(Source: By Mu Cui, April 2017, La'telier BNP Paribas)

Reference:
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2018-06/10/c_137244614.htm