Spain falling behind technological advances
According to a study carried out over the last 7 years aimed at finding out which countries in the world are the most innovative in terms of adopting new technologies, the present Spanish government has failed in its pledge to get Spain out of the rut it has occupied in innovation and new technology.
The study, carried out by The Economist, analyses almost 100 quantitative and qualitative parameters. This year Spain comes just 26th out of a total of 69 countries included in the study. The country which tops the list is Denmark for the second time running while he US and Sweden share second place.
The study looked at the infrastructure of information technologies in each country, its use by citizens, companies and the government and its involvement in the development of these technologies. According to the report their classifications allow each government to judge its technological initiatives against that of other countries.
The study also analysed 6 categories under the principle that digital development of a country affected its social, cultural and political structure, technological infrastructure and communications, the business, social and legal setting and the vision of the government and the adoption of new technologies both by companies and individuals. Spain does not make it into the top ten in any of the above concepts and its overall classification is just 7.29 out of 10.
According to the study the quantity and quality of Spain’s infrastructure appears to be its worst category with a ranking of just 6.70 out of 10 – one of the lowest rankings for all the EU countries in the study. This concept looks at the opportunity for individuals to connect to the internet and the availability of broadband internet connection as well as the number of mobile phones.
In statistics published in the Eurobarometer Spain is just above the average of 25% of homes with mobile telephones and land lines but below figures for households with computers and access to broad band internet connection.
In terms of government vision and policies in new technologies, Spain earns a mark of 7.25 which is also below other Western European countries, including Malta and Italy, and extremely low when compared with Denmark (9.85).
Spain also ranks badly in the categories of business environment, which analyses the facilities for the creation and development of high-tech companies, and adopting new technologies in a social-cultural setting.
Related:
Domestic use of new technology in Spain
Online shopping in Spain
E-commerce in Spain
E-commerce sector in Spain
Online shops in Spain
