The internet. How could we live without it? The truth is, there are many in the world who have much less internet access than us, and manage to get by. But some countries like Germany are placing a new importance on the internet is the average person’s life.
As I spoke about in our group’s presentation, German courts have ruled that the internet is an essential part of life. For the German people, this is great news; because it means their government will do anything it can to bring its people the best quality internet possible. As I also reported, Germany has had its fair share of problems in regards to higher speeds of internet. This declaration by the German government will push for faster internet (Broadband or Cable) in almost all places. Also, mobile internet should become for and more readily available.
I feel that while many people will take the quote of the German court out of context, it is really the truth. Today’s world isn’t as simple as it once was, and so many facets of life are found most abundantly and quickly online. Can anyone tell me the last time they applied for a full time job in person and not by filling out an application online? How about reading the news… does anyone regularly read the news in paper form? Most college age people and young adults are so used to using technology in all facets of life that anyone not used to it would have a hard time fitting in. Imagine moving from a country that doesn’t use the internet very much, and trying to be part of typical U.S. society. My feeling is that it would be enormously difficult.
Interestingly enough, Germany actually has the highest number of internet users, percentage wise compared to the U.K, & U.S. However, user numbers does not compare evenly to the much more advanced internet and speed capabilities that the United States and England have. Germany sits atop the list at 83%, followed closely by the United Kingdom at 82.5%, and the United States trails each sitting at 77.3%.
So what do you think? How important is the internet, and do you consider it essential?
Written by Travis Whalen
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By reading more about the internet access of other countries it made me realize the quality of the internet and appreciate the fact that i do have full access to the internet. I believe that having the internet is essential because the world is becoming more technologically advanced. If you didn’t have the internet, it would just put your country behind in the newest things that go along with life. I believe that what Germany has said is correct and that everyone should be moving toward improving their internet speed and access.
I am not surprised that Germany has a higher percentage of internet users than the U.S. I went abroad last spring semester and was able to visit Berlin. I found the city to be very technologically advanced like the U.S has become in the past decade or so.
Traveling like I have throughout Europe has allowed me to see that some countries are very technologically advanced than others. Germany and the U.K definitely seemed to be more advanced than Italy, which is where I was living. There is such a difference between the countries that find technology such as internet access as an important factor in every day life, and those who do not.
I personally think the internet is a very vital component of our everyday lives. In today’s society, we use the internet for so many things like job applications, news updates, entertainment, etc. I couldn’t imagine my daily life without having access to the internet any time I need it.
This blog post really related to how I currently feel involving the internet. I completely agree that I cannot live without the internet. I have not applied to a job that has not been on the internet. I also have not read the news from a real newspaper in a long time. I get all my information and news from the internet and honestly a lot of that comes from twitter. I was surprised that Germany had a higher rate of internet usage then the U.S., but that just goes to show how important the internet has become across the world and the influence it has on all nations, not just our own. But what surprised me along with learning the fact that Germany has higher internet usage is knowing and hearing that their internet usage is slower. I did notice that I had a large problem when visiting Germany finding an internet connection and it was so slow! To know how important the internet is, I am surprised that they have no found ways to make it faster. It seems to me that the U.S. is constantly trying to make internet faster and more efficient.
I found this blog to be very interesting and couldn’t agree with you more. I was shocked that the German courts actually ruled that the Internet is an essential part of life, making it so much more official. Here in the United States that was more of a obvious fact, without actually needing to be said. However, I completely agree when you said “Today’s world isn’t as simple as it once was, and so many facets of life are found most abundantly and quickly online. Can anyone tell me the last time they applied for a full time job in person and not by filling out an application online? How about reading the news… does anyone regularly read the news in paper form? ” The Internet has opened up communication around the world and has ultimately become a way of life. It offers a variety of things such as the news, information, socializing, researching, and pretty much anything else you might need. The possibilities are endless with a computer sitting in front of you, and it truly has become an essential part of our lives. Many individuals don’t realize how drastic it has changed the world we live in until they step away from the Internet for a couple days and feel lost and isolated. Although many people might not agree with the word essential in order to define how important the Internet is, I would have to say they were wrong. Yes essential items were food, water, and shelter in the past, however, I believe that since the world we live in has become more advanced and developed, the Internet has been added to that list.
I think that this post and your presentation were very eye opening for a lot of us. I like many other people are under the impression that Germany and most of Europe is a lot farther behind us in technology I was very surprised when you told us that Germany had more internet users than the U.S. and the U.K. . I think it is great that the German government recognizes the importance of Internet on society and will therefore work towards bettering the accessibility of the internet to all of Germany. I definitely agree that Internet is an essential part of life. If you had asked me five years ago I probably would have said no but the Internet has become such a part of everyday life. The internet is our way to communicate and communication is essential to life. The internet provides us with so much. The internet is an outlet for communication, knowledge and research, and leisure. Without it our world, regardless of the country, would be much different.
I think this is a great example of a country that realizes how important the internet is for growth. The government in Germany realizes this and I actually am surprised at how much importance they put on the development and sustainability of the internet. Before reading this blog and seeing the presentation, I was under the impression that Europe in general didn’t put as much importance on technology and the internet. I studied abroad in Rome and the internet there wasn’t to the United States’ standard. The internet was slow and unreliable, and not many people had it. After that, I thought all of Europe was the same. Clearly, Germany isn’t like this and I think that will cause them to grow as a country.
I think it will be awkward for many people, as seen by the video you guys presented in class, for people to accept the internet as “essential” for life. When you step back and look at it though, you find it to be quite true. You’re right, everything we do is online now, from reading the news to applying for jobs. Even here at Penn State you are expected to be connected for a variety of reasons: homework, research, submitting work, reading articles, etc. I’m glad for Germany in that their government recognizes this and can start focusing on development of all aspects of the internet in their country, from access to speed. Something I find kind of funny, based on this philosophy, is that if the internet was ever “destroyed,” we would all die. Right?
I was definitely surprised to see that German and UK citizens use the internet more frequently than US citizens. Being in college and interacting with other students and professors and other types of professionals on a regular basis, it is hard to imagine anyone not using the internet on a regular basis. Then again, none of my grandparents own or care to own a computer. Therefore, as the years go on this percentage of US citizens using the internet is only going to rise. Today, we see kids as young as 3 being introduced to the internet, and I am sure that this phenomenon is occurring in places like Germany and the UK as well. The internet is most certainly an essential part of life in the 21st century, and it only figures to grow. The internet gives us tools to conduct business globally at a rate never seen before. We can communicate and find information on almost anything around the world. Therefore, it is definitely a good idea for the German government to make a strong push to bring faster and better internet to the country. Better global internet connections mean that the world can operate more efficiently and more effectively. In sum, I believe the internet plays an essential role in improving the global community.
I found his point very interesting. This past semester I had the opportunity to visit two German cities, Berlin and Munich, and one thing I noticed about them was the efficiency and availability of the Internet. Almost every café and restaurant was equipped with wifi and every hotel was as well. Most hotels in other European cities had wifi only in the main lobby but in Germany you were able to get it in your room as well. I think that the Internet is becoming more and more of a necessity to people. Especially people traveling abroad because of high data costs. I find it admirable that Germany is taking a step into the future by ensuring everyone has internet connection. Realistically, the future is one that includes free Internet connection for all and the fact that Germany realizes this and is taking initiative is impressive.
For me, its weird to think that a country that sees the internet as an “essential” part of life. But when I really start to think about it and think about what Germany is trying to do, by calling the internet essential for all their citizens, it is a no-brainer. Much like how the YoungTurks video we saw in this group’s presentation explains, the internet is now very widely accessible ( especially in Germany) that anyone using it now has a better advantage of getting a job, paying bills, connecting and communicating with people than someone who does not have internet access. So with that said, it is a great thing for the people of Germany to have a government who sees the necessity to have internet access, and bring it to everyone. On a side note, it will be very interesting to see how Germany’s internet evolves with a 90-95% user base. Will their government need to initiate a surveillance bureau to spy on their citizen’s browsing behavior? Hopefully Germany will get things right without having to spy on their citizens, and America will be able to notes on how they do it.
I always find it interesting to see how the Internet is structured and how it is used in other countries so it really surprised me to that Germany uses the Internet more than a country like the USA. What makes that even more intriguing is the fact that their Internet is considerably slower than say the Internet here in the USA. I do feel like in this day and age having a strong Internet presence is necessary. With technology changing people as a whole have to change with it or be left behind. For countries to continue to prosper they need to keep up to date with all of the latest technologies such as faster and stronger Internet.
I found this blog post to be very interesting because it taught me many things that I would have never expected to be true. First, I thought it was great that the German courts have ruled that internet is an essential part of life, since it means that the government will do more to increase the quality of internet in the country. What I found to be surprising about this is that some people actually find it ridiculous that the German courts called internet essential to life. Even though the internet is not technically a necessity in order to sustain life I do believe it is essential for the needs of today’s world. Having internet puts people and companies at a major advantage compared to those who do not have access to internet. Therefore, I agree completely with the German courts decision and think it’s great that it should lead to better internet coverage in the country. This brings me to my second point, which is that I was surprised to learn that Germany doesn’t have the same quality of internet that we have in the United States. Germany is one of the most progressive countries in the world, so I naturally assumed that their internet would be as fast and as expansive as the internet in the United States. Lastly, I was shocked to learn that Germany has the highest amount of internet users out of any country. I would have definitely thought that the United States would be number one in this category since the internet was created here and we have the best internet available in this country. But according to the blog the United States ranks third behind Germany and United Kingdom, which really speaks volume of how similar those three countries are when it comes to their citizens being able to access information.
I was surprised when I learned that Germany believes that the internet is an essential part of life. I do not disagree with that statement, but I was surprised that a country was actually making that statement and then attempting to back that up by providing internet sources across the country. I believe the internet should be considered essential because it is an important tool that can also teach and educate people. It can also be used for a wrong purpose, but like you said, it is a common medium for people to learn and read the news. The fact is, is that the internet is the new way for people to learn about what is going on in today’s world and because of that the internet should be essential. In the future, I would like to see America make a similar claim and attempt to make the internet accessible for the entire population as Germany is attempting to do now. There will obviously be problems, but there are ways to work around those to make sure people have the internet.
It’s interesting to learn that Germany has a higher number of internet users than the US even though their internet speeds are not at par with ours. The internet is a big deal so it’s pretty important in our culture. We use the internet for pretty much everything. When it comes to being an essential, I don’t think that the internet should be considered an essential. People can continue on with their daily lives without the internet. An essential is something like food and water which a re absolutely needed. I think what Germany was trying to do by calling it an “essential” was to bring importance to it and making sure that the German people learn how to use the internet and take advantage of it. Like you have mentioned, people do not read newspapers anymore. They consume those things off of the internet. So, although I don’t believe that internet is an “essential” I believe it is important and I think the German government is taking this measure to improve their internet speed and so on.
When you presented this topic, I was very surprised by the statistic that Germany had a higher percentage of internet users than the United States and the United Kingdom, although it isn’t by much. I was very interested in your comparisons between the UK and Germany internet usage. I thought it was really enlightening that you incorporated the United States into your presentation as well. It really brought it all into perspective. Regarding your blog post and questions, I believe that Internet has become a critical aspect in our daily lives. I agree with you that our generation heavily relies on the Internet to apply for jobs and communicate with one another. The internet offers a convenient and quick way to get in touch with people you can easily find, even after losing touch. The internet provides us with news and I believe it is extremely important for globalization, allowing countries to be more involved with each other than ever before. I think Germany’s courts announcing it as essential to life may have been inappropriate. People were able to live and operate without the Internet. Essentials to life include food and water. I don’t think Internet should be categorized with those needs, however it is very important today.