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Sure, as a nation we're performing rather poorly compared to many other first-world countries when it comes to the percentage of our population who have a broadband connection -- but does this really matter?

Just the other day the nation was told that we won't be getting any tax cuts but instead, the government will be focusing on driving NZ's knowledge-based economy so we can all end up with more money in our pockets anyway.

I wonder what world our politicians are living in?

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The reality is that, apart from the occasional newsworthy exception, the vast majority of Kiwi businesses and export earners are not knowledge-based.

We're still largely a nation of farmers, foresters, vintners and others who grow products and export them. The knowledge component of our economy is rather dismal in fact -- despite much cheerleading from the sidelines by commentators and politicians.

Some might argue that we're lagging in the KBE stakes at least in part because the penetration of broadband is so low -- I'd argue the opposite.

It strikes me that we're not a nation of broadband users because we're not a knowledge-based or knowledge-hungry population.

The vast majority of businesses don't actually need a fast Net connection and in many cases, they don't need a Net connection at all.

Why on earth does the local supermarket need a website or any kind of Net presence other than an email address for instance?

Apart from ISPs and web developers, there have been very few new businesses created by the arrival of dial-up or broadband -- so is the Net really critical to the average NZ company?

I wonder if government, through the Commerce Commission and the relevant minister, haven't been slamming Telecom simply to divert attention from the fact that their own attempts to kick-start a KBE here have been woefully inadequate.

For example, I'm currently working on a project (and am up to the testing stage) that has *huge* export-earning potential. In order to progress to the next level, I need some information from, and the cooperation of, a government department. I've requested that information and got an acknowledgement of my request -- but I'm still waiting.

In private industry, time is money -- something that seems not to be the case within the halls of the civil service. Every day that I'm left waiting for a response means that the products involved are losing their lead over competing products from elsewhere.

How can we expect investors to pour their own money into helping build a KBE here when the government is all talk and no walk?

If we were really interested in promoting a KBE here in NZ then I think that hiking the efficiency and reducing the response times of government departments might be a damned site more useful than simply trying to make our broadband usage look good by OECD standards.

What do you think?

Is this kerfuffle over our poor broadband uptake just a smokescreen that helps obscure the fact that government has really dropped the ball when it comes to getting NZ into the 21st century?

Tell us all and see what others have to say in The Aardvark Forums

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