Bridging connectivity divides

Reliable and high-quality connectivity is fundamental for the digital transformation. Now more than ever, access to high-quality broadband services at affordable prices is essential to ensure that economic and social activities can continue in an increasingly remote manner. However, important disparities in terms of connectivity persist, aggravating the consequences of digital divides. As such, expanding connectivity to achieve an inclusive society is at the heart of policy agendas in OECD countries. However, more concretely, what are the innovative policies and regulatory measures that have proven to work best to ensure connectivity for all? This Going Digital Toolkit note provides a “roadmap” to policymakers by identifying policies and regulation to effectively reduce connectivity divides. Such policies include promoting competition, fostering investment, and removing barriers to broadband deployment, as well as a set of tailored approaches that are particularly relevant to extending connectivity in rural and remote areas. The Annex of this note provides examples of related policy and regulatory approaches implemented by different OECD countries.