Developing Countries Use More Mobile Phones
More than half of the world's population use a mobile phone and almost 25% use the Internet regularly as Third World countries are catching up on new technologies.
In 2002 about 1 billion people had mobile phone subscriptions, today the number has risen to about 4 billion. Two thirds of all mobile phones are in developing countries.
During the same time fewer people have been using fixed telephone lines. Mobiles are the dominating means of communication, even in the Third World.
Internet use has also doubled in the past seven years, although most people still have a slow connection. 20% of users in industrialized countries have a broadband connection, compared to only 5% in the developing world.
Leader of the pack is Sweden , where the use of communications technology is most advanced. South Korea and Denmark follow.
Even though Third World countries have been catching up there is still a wide gap between rich and poor countries.
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Words:
- advanced = very modern, well-developed
- although = but
- billion = one thousand million
- broadband = here: fast connection
- catch up = to get better and to reach the same standard as others
- developing countries = the poor countries of the world, mostly in Africa, Asia and South America
- fixed telephone line = the telephone that you can only use at home
- gap = space, difference
- industrialized countries = rich countries of the First World
- leader of the pack = number one
- means = methods, ways
- new technologies = modern communication like mobile phones or the Internet
- subscription = if you have an agreement with a phone company you must pay a certain amount of money every month