Many nations, especially developing countries and emerging economies, are under scrutiny, with specific attention paid to infrastructural characteristics of technology and their use by the citizens in the access layer (the access layer is the bottom-most layer in the administrative hierarchy that directly relates to the citizens). This layer is amply referred to by the policy makers, planners, academics, researchers, and managers involved in enumerating the digital divide.

The book discusses a contemporary issue, and comprehensively covers all aspects of the digital divide with case studies drawn from various countries and regions. The authors have gone beyond the discourses on broad and generic contours of the digital divide (that is, identifying gaps between haves and have-nots, rankings between nations, and performance measures between states and provinces in a nation).

These quotes from the literature illuminate the topics of this book:

No one knows his or her place in society; no one knows her or his class position or social status; no one knows what abilities or handicaps he or she will have; and no one knows her or his conception of the good or his or her psychological tendencies. [1]

Social and economic qualities are to be arranged so that they are both reasonably expected to be to everyone’s advantage and attached to positions and offices open to all. [2]

While the distribution of wealth and income need not be equal, it must be to everyone’s advantage, and at the same time, positions of authority must be accessible to all. [3]

The information symmetry and asymmetry among nations, between states and provinces in a nation, and in a local context are also part of the digital divide. Discussions on this in a separate chapter could have enriched the content of the book. Discussions on equity, equality, and the role of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in supporting these phenomena in a society would have brought in new dimensions in measurements. In any case, this book will be of interest to researchers, academics, and policy makers.