What's it all about
What is the digital economy?
The Australian Government’s Department for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy describes the digital economy as the global network of economic and social activities that are enabled by platforms such as the Internet, mobile and sensor networks.
Australia's economic growth and ability to maintain its international standing relies on a successful digital economy.
The digital economy offers new opportunities for businesses and individuals to connect and collaborate with a larger, potentially global, audience. It is about the activities that networked technology makes possible.
Digital technologies are transforming how the financial economy operates in practical terms - how industries operate and grow, what products and services are offered, how essential services such as health and education are provided, how Governments interact with citizens, and creating new occupations and ways of working.
The Australian Federal Government is investing in the construction of a national broadband network. It is planned that the National Broadband Network (NBN) will bring fast, high capacity connections to most Australian homes and communities.
Unlike cable or ADSL connections, broadband offers an ‘always on’ connection independent of the telephone system, where all services, including Internet, telephone, television, and other digital content are available at the same time through one cable. Broadband will allow the use of new communication tools such as VOIP telephony (voice over internet protocol) multimedia content, uploading and downloading of larger data files, video transmission and the use of new applications.
Urban, regional, remote and rural communities will be connected as never before to content, services and technologies on completion of the broadband network, offering huge potential for a number of fields in which South Australia excels including digital content creation, multi media production, education and health care.
Highlighting the opportunities that this technology will bring to the State, Dr Bell has said ‘South Australia has the potential to be to the digital economy what it is to defence.’