We all know the Internet is amazing, but did you know that it’s also making the world a better place? The McKinsey Global Institute has just released a report on the Internet’s role in global financial growth, jobs and industry, and the results show that Internet connectivity is driving all sectors in the right direction.
Among the findings of the report, which analysed data from 13 countries around the world (Australia wasn’t one of them), the Internet accounts for 3.4% of GDP in the countries looked at and 21% of GDP growth in mature countries over the past five years; The Internet created 2.6 new jobs for every one lost offline; 75% of the impact from the Internet comes from traditional industries becoming more efficient; Small and medium businesses using web technologies grow and export twice as much as others and the Internet creates up to €20 per internet user per month of consumer surplus.
THe report details its findings in great detail, arguing that the countries who are investing the most in the internet are going to get the most out of it, as summed up nicely in the report’s conclusion:
Understanding just how much the Internet contributes to national economies should spur government and business leaders to seek ways to optimize their participation in the global Internet ecosystem. Encouraging usage is an unavoidable first step in leveraging public spending, but leaders must also focus on providing human capital, financial capital, infrastructure, and the appropriate business environment.
If that isn’t an indirect endorsement for the NBN, what is?